WASHINGTON (ABP) — The controversial founder of the Christian Coalition has endorsed a Republican presidential candidate known for his support of abortion rights and gay rights.
In a Nov. 7 Washington press conference, television evangelist Pat Robertson announced he is supporting former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani in his bid to gain the GOP nomination.
“Today it is my pleasure to announce my support for America's mayor, Rudy Giuliani,” Robertson said, calling the candidate “a proven leader who is not afraid of what lies ahead, and who will cast a hopeful vision for all Americans.”
Robertson praised Giuliani for his visible role as New York's leader during the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, as well as his stewardship of the city during his two mayoral terms. Robertson credited Giuliani with the dramatic economic renaissance and reduction in crime that New York experienced during his term, including pushing significant tax cuts. Robertson praised Giuliani for reforming the city's government “in the spirit of bipartisanship, which is so urgently needed in Washington today.”
He also said he believes Giuliani's vow to appoint only “strict constructionist” judges to the federal courts if he is elected president. The term is one used by conservatives who believe judges should interpret the Constitution literally, as the Framers intended it. In practice, many who follow that judicial philosophy believe the Constitution does not protect abortion rights or gay rights, nor do they believe it prohibits government endorsements of Christianity.
Giuliani is still pro-choice, however, and has been a strong supporter of gay rights in the past.
Giuliani, who appeared with Robertson, praised the evangelist as “a person of great, well-deserved reputation” who “understands, I think, to a very large extent, what America is all about, and has very well articulated what are the overriding issues of our time.”
Giuliani said those issues include “dealing with the Islamic terrorist war against us, dealing with that in a way in which we are safe, as safe as we can be.”
Robertson once was one of the premier leaders among conservative evangelicals and ran for the GOP nomination himself in 1988. However, the Christian Coalition's prestige and influence have decreased dramatically since the organization's peak in the mid-1990s.
In recent years, Robertson has drawn criticism even from fellow Christian conservatives for several controversial comments. Shortly after the 2001 attacks, for instance, he was widely condemned for comments he made on his “700 Club” television program saying that gays, abortion-rights activists, civil libertarians and others were at least partially responsible for the attacks on America. More recently, Robertson came under fire for comments seeming to call for the assassination of left-wing Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
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