Tony Zirkle
Encyclopedia
Tony Zirkle, formerly known as Tony Van Ness, is a suspended attorney and biennial Republican candidate for Congress in Indiana
. He has run on strong opposition to pornography
and prostitution
. In the 2006 Republican
primary for Indiana's 2nd congressional district
he attained 30% of the vote against Chris Chocola
, who later lost to Joe Donnelly
in the general election. Zirkle's license to practice law in Indiana was suspended in 2009 for multiple instances and types of misconduct, including counseling his client in a dissolution case on how to evade a court order not to remove the couple's children from the county, falsely telling the court that his client continued to reside in the county, and many instances of over-billing clients. Zirkle will be eligible to apply for reinstatement in October 2011.
. He studied law at Indiana University (Bloomington). He attended the U.S. Naval Academy, and received a degree from Georgetown University
. His Birth name is Frederick Von Ness.
's birthday. He defended this by stating that he will speak to any group that asks and that the event was an opportunity to preach the gospel. He has previously made statements skeptical or critical of racial integration
, suggesting that such a policy would not be outside of Republican tradition, "Abraham Lincoln
called for African-Americans to be deported back to Africa
." These elements led several local Republicans to call him "repugnant" or "backwards." He has allegedly received death threats over the controversy.
Zirkle has crusaded against pornography, which he believes to be a Jewish plot against women. "We now have a small army of male black porn stars that are sifting through five, ten, fifteen thousand women... One man can now genocide
the wombs of thousands of women, infecting them with sexually transmitted diseases that leave them barren." His ex-wife, who currently has a protective order against him for herself and her children, and his children are actually Jewish.
He later finished third in the 2008 GOP congressional primary with Luke Puckett being the winner.
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
. He has run on strong opposition to pornography
Pornography
Pornography or porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual arousal and erotic satisfaction.Pornography may use any of a variety of media, ranging from books, magazines, postcards, photos, sculpture, drawing, painting, animation, sound recording, film, video,...
and prostitution
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
. In the 2006 Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
primary for Indiana's 2nd congressional district
Indiana's 2nd congressional district
Indiana's 2nd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Indiana. Based in South Bend, the district is located in north-central Indiana and takes in the Indiana portion of the Michiana region...
he attained 30% of the vote against Chris Chocola
Chris Chocola
Joseph Christopher "Chris" Chocola is the president of the Club for Growth, a fiscally conservative political organization that supports a low-tax and limited-government agenda....
, who later lost to Joe Donnelly
Joe Donnelly
Joseph Simon "Joe" Donnelly, Sr. is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2007. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Donnelly announced Monday May 9 that he would run for the United States Senate seat that is held by Republican Richard Lugar.-Early life, education and career:Joe Donnelly...
in the general election. Zirkle's license to practice law in Indiana was suspended in 2009 for multiple instances and types of misconduct, including counseling his client in a dissolution case on how to evade a court order not to remove the couple's children from the county, falsely telling the court that his client continued to reside in the county, and many instances of over-billing clients. Zirkle will be eligible to apply for reinstatement in October 2011.
Biography
Born Frederick Von Ness. Zirkle was a Seventh-day AdventistSeventh-day Adventist Church
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Protestant Christian denomination distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ...
. He studied law at Indiana University (Bloomington). He attended the U.S. Naval Academy, and received a degree from Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
. His Birth name is Frederick Von Ness.
2008 candidacy and controversy
In the 2008 election he garnered national attention by appearing at a Neo-Nazi celebration of Adolf HitlerAdolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
's birthday. He defended this by stating that he will speak to any group that asks and that the event was an opportunity to preach the gospel. He has previously made statements skeptical or critical of racial integration
Racial integration
Racial integration, or simply integration includes desegregation . In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportunity regardless of race, and the development of a culture that draws on diverse traditions, rather than merely...
, suggesting that such a policy would not be outside of Republican tradition, "Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
called for African-Americans to be deported back to Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
." These elements led several local Republicans to call him "repugnant" or "backwards." He has allegedly received death threats over the controversy.
Zirkle has crusaded against pornography, which he believes to be a Jewish plot against women. "We now have a small army of male black porn stars that are sifting through five, ten, fifteen thousand women... One man can now genocide
Genocide
Genocide is defined as "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group", though what constitutes enough of a "part" to qualify as genocide has been subject to much debate by legal scholars...
the wombs of thousands of women, infecting them with sexually transmitted diseases that leave them barren." His ex-wife, who currently has a protective order against him for herself and her children, and his children are actually Jewish.
He later finished third in the 2008 GOP congressional primary with Luke Puckett being the winner.
Law license suspension
On September 1, 2009, Zirkle's license to practice law was suspended by the state Supreme Court, which "found Zirkle engaged in eight counts of professional misconduct, including improper billing practices and charging clients for incompetent services." Zirkle said "that the charges against him were exaggerated or blatantly false." The suspension went into effect October 1, 2009.External links
- TonyZirkle.com, official website