The Unsuspecting Thing Conservative Historian David Barton Did With $1 Million Awarded to Him in Defamation Lawsuit

Conservative historian David Barton has given away the money he won as the result of a $1 million judgement issued earlier this year in a defamation lawsuit he brought against two Democratic Texas State Board of Education candidates who he accused of unfairly maligning him.

"All the money that we received as a result we gave away," Barton told TheBlaze Monday, declining to share information about the recipient.

The WallBuilders founder filed a lawsuit after the candidates, Rebecca Bell-Metereau and Judy Jennings, claimed in a 2010 campaign video that Barton was tied to white supremacist groups. In that clip, the two reportedly said that Barton was "known for speaking at white supremacist rallies," according to a 2012 New York Times report.

Historian and Wallbuilders founder David Barton speaks on The Glenn Beck Program November 4, 2014. (TheBlaze TV)

The two rallies mentioned in the video reportedly unfolded in 1991 and were with organizations linked to the Christian Identity movement, a racist group which believes "that whites of European descent can be traced back to the 'Lost Tribes of Israel,'" among other racist and anti-Semitic beliefs, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Barton did not deny in court documents or in his interview with TheBlaze that he spoke to the groups, but said he was not aware of their beliefs at the time and that he never again attended any events linked to the movement, the Times reported.

After a three-year battle, Bell-Metereau and Jennings settled before the case went to trial in July. In addition to the $1 million payout, Barton also received an apology, WND reported.

"We understand that this statement suggested that David Barton is a white supremacist, and that the two organizations he is affiliated with, WallBuilder Presentations, Inc. and WallBuilders L.L.C., were associated with or supportive of white supremacists," the two said. "After learning more about Mr. Barton, we realize this statement was false. We separately and jointly apologize to Mr. Barton for damage to him individually and to his two organizations as a result of that statement."

And Barton has reportedly been able to use the win to correct others who he believes have uttered mistruths. Consider that Bob Barr, who lost his Congressional run over the summer, backtracked after criticizing Barton during an electoral debate — once he learned about the lawsuit, WND reported.

Barton waged the legal battle after years of what he said have been unfair attacks and mischaracterizations by critics.

With these critiques and harsh rebukes amounting to a financial hit on his organization, he said it was time to take action and that clearing his reputation was paramount.

"If you don't challenge it it will stand in history as un-rebutted," he said. "Reputation is worth more than anything you can have."

Barton said that he wanted supporters to know that his work is not comprised of "made-up stuff" and that they have been able to rely on trustworthy history over the years.

David Barton (TheBlaze TV)

The historian declined to give the exact sum of money received, as settlements are sometimes less than the sum presented in a judgement.

W.S. Smith, a third individual Barton sued, dropped off the grid after 2011, didn't show up in court to defend himself and has not been heard from publicly since.

Other legal battles could follow. Read more about the story here.

(H/T: Charisma News)