Falwell told The Associated Press that no one from the evangelical community or the White House pressured him to apologize. However, he said a White House representative called him Friday while he was driving to the National Cathedral memorial service in Washington, and told him the president disapproved.
You know, I was wondering why Falwell had apologized; he's not generally terribly concerned about anyone other than his core followers. At least now we understand why he's trying so hard to weasel out of what he said without weaseling out of what he said -- The mas grande conservative Christian de todos unleashed a little mild whoopass on him. (I dare say they probably also said something to Robertson, which would explain why he suddenly turned on Jerry, who must have been just terribly surprised.)
Is it just me, or does this make Bush sound something like Queen Victoria, looking down his nose through his lorgnette, pronouncing, "We are not amused."
The other funny part is where Robertson both attacked Falwell (and I'll bet that was a nasty surprise -- the president and his little pal, all piling on over what they would both normally consider a nondisputable statement) and then said that his remarks were "not fully understood". Let's just review a section of those remarks, shall we? Let's shall.
JERRY FALWELL: I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way - all of them who have tried to secularize America - I point the finger in their face and say "you helped this happen."
PAT ROBERTSON: Well, I totally concur, and the problem is we have adopted that agenda at the highest levels of our government. And so we're responsible as a free society for what the top people do. And, the top people, of course, is the court system.
OK, what part of that first statement is hard to understand? And if he didn't understand it, how is it that Robertson didn't say, "Well, what do you mean by that, Jerry? Do you mean that some of our fellow Americans helped this horrible event?" or something of that persuasion? Or even, "I'm not sure I understand what you mean." How does "I totally concur" somehow turn into "I didn't fully understand"?
What scumsucking weasels they are.
That said, I do wish people would stop saying that Falwell and/or Robertson are done as a political force with that statement. That's nothing more than wishful thinking, and patently dangerous thinking if it makes the people on Falwell's Enemies List (oh, of course he has one) stop thinking of him as an enemy they need to pay attention to. All the two of them did was to say something stupid at the wrong time. At another time, if he had said, for example, "I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way - all of them who have tried to secularize America - all of them have led to the moral downfall of our country," (in fact, I think he has said that and variations thereof, more than once) ... aside from the specific people he condemned, nobody would have protested. Nobody would even have found it particularly unusual for him to say. There may be some moderate Christians (of which, it is pertinent to note, our president is not one) who will be repulsed by his statements, maybe even a few more conservative ones who will find those remarks at this time to be too much to take. But neither of them is finished -- or even significantly damaged -- as a political force. If Robertson decides to run for president again -- not that he would ever have won -- he will still do well enough in the Iowa and New Hampshire primaries to have some power to dictate to the Republican Party platform committees, which is what he really wants; to make certain that the Republican Party stays hard right of center.
Copyright © 2001, Iain Jackson, after-words.org
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12/19/2001: vive la france
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12/18/2001: you're NOT in the army now
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