By Sarah Posner, AlterNet
Posted on May 27, 2010, Printed on May 27, 2010
http://www.alternet.org/story/147010/At first glance, Dr. Timothy F. Johnson appears to be everything the Republican Party -- and its allies in the religious right and the Tea Party movement -- would want in a point man for the recruitment of African-American candidates to the GOP ticket.
Tall, trim and good-looking, with a Ph.D., according to his bio, and a 21-year military career -- from which he retired as an officer, according to his resume -- Johnson presents himself as a committed Christian family man. He is a spokesman for his cause at events convened by the religious right, such as the recent Freedom Federation Awakening Summit that took place at Liberty University last month, and to the media. In recent months, Johnson has been quoted by the New York Times and the Associated Press, and has appeared on CNN.
But in the year since he won the vice-chairmanship of the North Carolina Republican Party -- the first African American to win such a high office in the NCGOP -- key elements of Johnson's personal story are being questioned.
A leading figure in efforts to build a movement of African-American conservative Christian Republicans, Johnson was elected to his GOP post by party delegates last year despite a felony domestic violence conviction, questions raised about his military service and the validity of the doctorate that appears on his resume. An investigation by AlterNet turned up records of a second domestic violence arrest and raised further questions about Johnson's military service.
http://www.alternet.org/news/147010/is_the_gop%27s_point_man_for_recruiting_black_candidates_hiding_a_fake_ph.d._and_a_violent_past/