Category: News and Views
Robertson Apologizes for Chavez Remarks
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Religious broadcaster Pat Robertson apologized Wednesday for calling for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, only hours after he denied saying Chavez should be killed.
"Is it right to call for assassination?" Robertson said. "No, and I apologize for that statement. I spoke in frustration that we should accommodate the man who thinks the U.S. is out to kill him."
Chavez, whose country is the world's fifth-largest oil exporter, has emerged as one of the most outspoken critics of President Bush. He accuses the United States of conspiring to topple his government and possibly backing plots to assassinate him. U.S. officials have called the accusations ridiculous.
On Monday's telecast of his Christian Broadcasting Network show "The 700 Club," Robertson had said: "You know, I don't know about this doctrine of assassination, but if he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it. It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war, and I don't think any oil shipments will stop."
He continued: "We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability. We don't need another $200 billion war to get rid of one, you know, strong-arm dictator. It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with."
On Wednesday, he initially denied having called for Chavez to be killed and said The Associated Press had misinterpreted his remarks.
"I didn't say 'assassination.' I said our special forces should 'take him out,'" Robertson said on his show. "'Take him out' could be a number of things including kidnapping."
He later issued the apology on his Web site.
When the AP had called Robertson on Tuesday for elaboration, spokeswoman Angell Watts said Robertson would not do interviews and had no statement about his remarks. He also declined several interview requests Wednesday.,
On Tuesday, the State Department called Robertson's remarks "inappropriate."
Let's just hope Robertson goes the way of Jim Baker, Jimmy Swaggert and oOrel Roberts. If only Jerry Falwell wasn't made of teflon. he'd be out of the public eye as well.
Richard
What an absolutly paranoid bampot.. ok, I do believe the world could only benefit from the assassination of bush, simply because his policies have endangered the lives of so man yand will continue to do so. For a so called christian to make such an insane remark has proved what I have thought all along america is a country run and influenced by nutters...this goes along with Dick Chaney's remark to bush over Iraq. "Shall we nuke them Mr President..or your man threatening to "Use all means possible to bring down Saddam"..and that was with Colin powell's hand working the controls.
I like the way you think.
Thanks I find the american administration to be largely insufferable..it's good to hear a bit of rebellion at last.
i know that it's a scottish expession, but can you give me the defination of bampot. i'd like to start using that tern it sounds cool. oh, by the way, did you hear that some newspapers in the u. s. refused to run doonsbury for afew days because they reffered to bush's top advisor, karl rove, as "turd blossom". i thought that was friggin' hilarious and outrageous at the same time.
I urge you guys to prank call the 700 club every night and ask them to pray for Venezualan President Hugo Chavez, that he may be protected from assascination...and that the Lord might remove the evil from the righteous hearts of zealots like Pat Robertson.
*smiles* Yeah, I wonder if people have started doing something like that. That was a very weird thing of him to say, especially him expressing it publically on a Christian-based program. According to the Bible, we should love our neighbors (praying for them and stuff), not commenting in a way, that they should be killed. *smiles*
Leilani
MaccaFan. Bampot refers to a person who is slightly crazy and definately not very bright..
Turd Blossom I love it!..
Pat's at it again.
I think his handlers need to be a little more careful about making sure he takes his medication as prescribed.
ROBERTSON BLAMES HURRICANE ON CHOICE OF ELLEN DEGENERES TO HOST EMMYS
Lesbian is New Orleans native
Hollywood – Pat Robertson on Sunday said that Hurricane Katrina was God's way of expressing its anger at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for its selection of Ellen Degeneres to host this year's Emmy Awards. "By choosing an avowed lesbian for this national event, these Hollywood elites have clearly invited God's wrath," Robertson said on "The 700 Club" on Sunday. "Is it any surprise that the Almighty chose to strike at Miss Degeneres' hometown?"
Robertson also noted that the last time Degeneres hosted the Emmys, in 2001, the September 11 terrorism attacks took place shortly before the ceremony.
"This is the second time in a row that God has invoked a disaster shortly before lesbian Ellen Degeneres hosted the Emmy Awards," Robertson explained to his approximately one million viewers. "America is waiting for her to apologize for the death and destruction that her sexual deviance has brought onto this great nation."
Robertson added that other tragedies of the past several years can be linked to Degeneres' growing national prominence. September, 2003, for example, is both the month that her talk show debuted and when insurgents first gained a foothold in Iraq following the successful March invasion. "Now we know why things took a turn for the worse," he explained.
In order to avoid further tragedy, Robertson called not only for the Television Academy to find a new heterosexual host, but to bar all homosexuals and bisexuals from taking part in the ceremony.
He said employees at the Christian Broadcasting Network had put together a list of 283 nominees, presenters, and invited guests at the Emmys known to be of sexually deviant persuasions.
"God already allows one awards show to promote the homosexual agenda," Robertson declared. "But clearly He will not tolerate such sinful behavior to spread beyond the Tonys."
I have to agree, it's unnatural, and it's about time God shows us the true way.
Oh wow, so all this is Ellen's fault? (being sarcastic* But really, that's crazy for that guy to be thinking like that. It makes me think of when people used to believe that people and their children suffered (from obviously unavoidable things) because they committed past sins. I thought we were past that time.
Leilani
The thing about Robertson blaming the hurricane on God's wrath against Ellen is a joke. Whoever made it up had a pretty good handle on his style, though.
Oh. Well that's cool then, that it was a joke. *smiles* And yeah, I should've thought about it: If he'd have said that, we'd be hearing it on the news, on radio talk shows, and everything. Anyways, that'd still be messed up if there were still people who think like that
Leilani