Texas

The Company That Rick Perry Keeps

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 6/27/2011 11:07 am

For the last several weeks, we have been taking a look at the ultra-right-wing with whom Gov. Rick Perry is partnering for his upcoming "The Response" prayer rally and now, via the Texas Freedom Network, we get some rather revealing information about another one of the event's endorsers: Pastor Stephen Broden.

In 2010, Broden ran for Congress as a Republican vying to win a seat to represent a district in Dallas  and, during the campaign, was asked by WFAA-TV Channel 8 to defend a litany of controversial statements he had made, including his view that the prospect of violently overthrowing the US government was an option that must always remain on the table ... and Broden stood by that view:

In the interview, Brad Watson, political reporter for WFAA-TV (Channel 8), asked Broden about a tea party event last year in Fort Worth in which he described the nation's government as tyrannical.

"We have a constitutional remedy," Broden said then. "And the Framers say if that don't work, revolution."

Watson asked if his definition of revolution included violent overthrow of the government. In a prolonged back-and-forth, Broden at first declined to explicitly address insurrection, saying the first way to deal with a repressive government is to "alter it or abolish it."

"If the government is not producing the results or has become destructive to the ends of our liberties, we have a right to get rid of that government and to get rid of it by any means necessary," Broden said, adding the nation was founded on a violent revolt against Britain's King George III.

Watson asked if violence would be in option in 2010, under the current government.

"The option is on the table. I don't think that we should remove anything from the table as it relates to our liberties and our freedoms," Broden said, without elaborating. "However, it is not the first option."

Religious Right Leaders Huddle To Plan For 2012 Election, Target Obama

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Thursday, 6/23/2011 5:43 pm

In a story first reported by Brian Kaylor of EthicsDaily.com, James Robison has been bringing social conservative activists and televangelists from across the country together to strategize on how to prevent President Barack Obama from winning reelection. A who’s who of Religious Right leaders, including Don Wildmon, Tony Perkins, Richard Land, Rod Parsley, Jerry Boykin, Jim Garlow, Daniel Lapin, Kenneth Copeland, Harry Jackson and Sam Rodriguez attended the gathering hosted by Robison.

According to Kaylor’s report, Robison called the meetings an “absolute necessity and one of the ways the people of God’s Kingdom can leave His footprints on planet Earth, impacting our own great nation.” Robison, who was Mike Huckabee’s mentor and host of Life Today, recently spoke with Texas Gov. Rick Perry about how the economic crisis was needed to turn America back to God. Wildmon and Garlow are both closely involved in organizing Perry’s The Response prayer rally and Kaylor reports that the “group is connected to Republican Texas Gov. Rick Perry's plan for a large prayer rally in August.” He writes:

According to a list obtained by EthicsDaily.com, among the attendees at the meeting were several Southern Baptist leaders: Robert Jeffress, pastor of First Baptist Church of Dallas who recently suggested on Fox News that Obama was a Muslim; Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission; Richard Lee, pastor and the editor of the controversial The American Patriot's Bible; and former North American Mission Board head Bob Reccord, who now heads the semi-secretive group the Council for National Policy, founded by Tim LaHaye. Jerry Falwell Jr., president of Liberty University and son of the late founder of the Moral Majority, was scheduled to attend but couldn't make it.

Also attending the meeting were: Jacob Aranza, a minister who in the 1980s helped popularize the theory that rock ’n’ roll music included backmasked messages promoting drug use and sex; Vonette Bright, widow of Campus Crusade for Christ founder Bill Bright, who played a key role in conservative religious-political efforts that birthed the so-called "Religious Right"; Jerry Boykin, a former Pentagon official rebuked for violating policies by speaking in churches in uniform; Jim Garlow, chairman of Newt Gingrich's organization, Renewing American Leadership; Ruth Graham, daughter of evangelist Billy Graham; Harry Jackson, a politically active conservative pastor; David Lane, who has led several efforts to politically mobilize pastors; Ron Luce of Teen Mania Ministries; former Republican U.S. Rep. Bob McEwen; Rod Parsley, a controversial megachurch pastor who endorsed John McCain in 2008 before being rejected by McCain; Samuel Rodriguez of the National Hispanic Christian Leaders Conference; and Don Wildmon of the American Family Association.

…

Tony Perkins, president of the James Dobson-founded Family Research Council, similarly praised Robison during the June 2 broadcast. Perkins attended both the September and June meetings.

"I sensed a new leadership that the Lord has called you to, in that there is a clear recognition that America needs to turn to God," Perkins said. "But I think what you're able to do as kind of a senior statesman of the church is to call together those leaders today that are emerging, and those that are present, to bring them together because unity is the key. I know one of the conversations we had is that you prayed for that unity among us. I think if we could ever be unified and we could walk together as a body of believers in this country that we could profoundly impact this nation."

…

Robison and his group seem united in their opposition to Obama and their desire to see Obama defeated in 2012, but it remains to be seen if they can find a candidate who unites and activates them like Ronald Reagan did in 1980.

Watch Robison and Perkins explain America’s dire need for Godly leaders:

Rick Perry Partners With Group That Prays For Jews To Convert To Christianity

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Thursday, 6/23/2011 1:10 pm

When Texas governor and potential presidential candidate Rick Perry announced that he was holding a prayer rally called The Response, co-hosted by the American Family Association, Right Wing Watch flagged the immense influence of another group, the International House of Prayer (IHOP), in organizing the event. Members of the IHOP leadership hold high-ranking positions in The Response’s leadership team, including Director of The Response Luis Cataldo, National Student Mobilization coordinator Dave Sliker, and program coordinators Jill Cataldo and Randy and Kelsey Bohlender. Mike Bickle, the director of IHOP, is also an official endorser of the event. IHOP is closely tied to a similar prayer rally known as The Call, whose head Lou Engle has used The Call to strongly denounce reproductive rights and homosexuality, support Uganda’s “kill-the-gays” bill among other anti-gay legislation, and engage in “spiritual warfare” against the Supreme Court.

IHOP also propagates an extreme but common view held in many Religious Right circles: that the Jewish people must convert to Christianity in order to bring about the return of Jesus Christ to Earth and the End Times. Many Religious Right groups and activists, including John Hagee, another endorser of The Response, believe that the End Times will only be fulfilled once enough Jews leave their faith and become Christians.

In fact, IHOP made a video that asked people to prayer for Jews to convert to Christianity, because “He will return only when Israel is ready and willing to receive Him as their savior and king. When He returns, the entire nation of Israel will be saved.” Much like the spokesman for The Response who said that he wants members of all faiths to “seek out the living Christ” at Perry’s rally, IHOP urges members to pray for Jews to accept the Gospel:

The nation of Israel – God’s chosen people. Believers are commanded in the Bible to pray for this nation, but why? It’s true that God wants to bring forth a people from every tribe, tongue, and nation, neither Jew nor Gentile to worship before his throne, but when it comes to Israel, is there something more? Yes. God has not finished with Israel. The eternal covenant promises of God to Israel still stand.

It is through Israel that God will establish His kingdom on the Earth in fullness, and through whom, He will bring blessing to every nation. Jesus is returning to the Earth to rule as the Jewish king from Jerusalem on the throne of David.

He will return only when Israel is ready and willing to receive Him as their savior and king. When He returns, the entire nation of Israel will be saved.

The attack against Israel will escalate as we approach the End Times, with an increase in global anti-Semitism, culminating in a united political and military assault against the city of Jerusalem. For this reason, it is critical that the people of God come into agreement with God’s purpose for Israel, and take their stand in the place of prayer.

So, how should we pray? Scripture tells us to pray for two cities: our own city, and for the peace of Jerusalem. We must pray, first and foremost, for spiritual peace, that the Gospel would go forth with power among the Jewish people both globally and in the land.

We must pray for the Lord to raise up anointed, prophetic witnesses to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, for it will be through the Gentiles, Paul says, that Israel will be provoked to jealousy. We must also join our prayers with those of believers in the land, praying that God would raise up an anointed witness to Yeshua in the land of Israel. We must pray for social peace in the land of Israel, both relationally and economically.

Finally, we must pray for political peace. There can be no true political peace until Jesus rules as king from Jerusalem, but until that time, we must pray for the safety of believers, the safety of the land from every demonic attack, that the Gospel might go forth with power.

Right Wing Round-Up

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Tuesday, 6/21/2011 6:03 pm
  • Judd Legum @ Think Progress: Santorum: Poor History Scores A Result Of ‘Conscious Effort’ By ‘The Left’ To Keep Students Uninformed.
  • Dahlia Lithwick @ Slate: Class Dismissed: The Supreme Court Decides That The Women Of Wal-Mart Can’t Have Their Day In Court.
  • TNR: Rick Perry: Why His Texas Record Is Much Worse Than You Think.

Perry Reaches Out To Vander Plaats For Iowa Advice

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Tuesday, 6/21/2011 12:33 pm

As Governor Rick Perry ponders a run for the presidency, it is already clear that he doesn’t mind working with the most radical of anti-gay leaders. Perry’s The Response prayer rally is hosted by the American Family Association, whose spokesman Bryan Fischer wants to see homosexuality criminalized, and former activists with The Call, a prayer rally that defended Uganda’s 'kill-the-gays' bill. Other individuals working with The Response include militantly anti-gay leaders Jim Garlow, Cindy Jacobs, David Barton and David Welch.

Now, the Des Moines Register reports that Perry aides are reaching out to Bob Vander Plaats, the head of The Family Leader. Vander Plaats led the successful campaign to remove three Iowa Supreme Court justices who backed marriage equality and is closely linked to (and funded by) the AFA. Vander Plaats is also tied to an effort that likened being gay to being a cigarette smoker and once said that allowing equal marriage rights for gay couples threatened the system of private property and gun-ownership rights. One former adviser said that Vander Plaats is “obsessed with the gay marriage issue.”

Since Vander Plaats is a powerful Religious Right figure who has hosted presidential candidates like Michele Bachmann, Tim Pawlenty, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul, and Herman Cain, it is no surprise that Perry is in touch with him:

A supporter of possible presidential candidate Rick Perry of Texas telephoned an Iowa conservative leader today, inquiring about the political scene in Iowa.

“They were asking questions, asking my take on Iowa, how things are lining up and also making sure I know they like Rick Perry,” said Bob Vander Plaats, president of the Family Leader, an Iowa-based conservative advocacy group that’s hosting a presidential lecture series.

…

Vander Plaats said he has so far spoke with two Texans and one other out-of-stater, but declined to share their names because the conversations were intended to be private.

None of the callers included Perry’s political strategist Dave Carney, or anyone who currently works for Perry, he said. “They’re just people that are around him and they think he’d be good for the race,” Vander Plaats said.

Will Rick Perry's Prayer Rally Feature Spiritual Warfare?

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Tuesday, 6/21/2011 11:57 am

When Texas governor and potential presidential candidate Rick Perry decided to host a prayer rally, The Response, with the bigoted American Family Association and the radical International House of Prayer, Right Wing Watch noted the two groups’ bigoted and extreme beliefs along with the rally’s goal of proselytizing to non-Christians.

Yesterday we noted that one of the leaders of Texas Governor Rick Perry’s The Response, ‘Apostle’ Doug Stringer, blamed America for the September 11th attacks because of what he saw as the country’s increasing secularism and acceptance of homosexuality, and that the AFA began using other ‘apostles’ to defend Perry as the answer to their prayers. Already, Kansas governor and former senator Sam Brownback has signed up to participate.

One of The Response’s endorsers, Cindy Jacobs, is a self-declared ‘Prophet’ and a well-known advocate of the “spiritual warfare,” writing books such as Deliver Us From Evil and Possessing the Gates of the Enemy: A Training Manual for Militant Intercession. For example, Jacobs used spiritual warfare against Craigslist, non-Christian religions, and gays and lesbians.

Another The Response endorser is “spiritual warfare” leader James ‘Jay’ Swallow, a Native American “apostle” who founded the Two Rivers Native American Training Center. Like Jacobs, Swallow has spoken at The Call rallies including one in which he accepted on behalf of all Native Americans Brownback’s apology for the federal government’s mistreatment of indigenous people. According to his biography, “God has given Dr. Swallow extraordinary insight into ‘healing the land’ through prayer and spiritual warfare.” The Center is built around the “Strategic Warriors At Training (SWAT): A Christian Military Training Camp for the purpose of dealing with the occult and territorial enemy strong holds in America.” Seminars include “Demonic Spirits,” “Spiritual Warfare,” “Identifying the Strongman,” and “Freemasonry.” The training is apparently so intense that Swallow asks participants sign a “release of liability” form to waive their right to sue.

According to the Swallow, the theme of the training is “We have declared war”:

In the last decade great leaders have been given the revelation of ingredients that have instituted the desire of God to recover from the enemy the promises of our nation, America, and to compact the many divisions into an expression of Biblical Christianity.

The enemy has fortified his temporary property by placing strongholds of resistance to the coming invasion. He knows he is to be removed from authority over areas that we, the divided church, have given him permission to rule.

…

The next two weeks will make warriors out of you. I don’t mean armchair warriors, but a SPECIALIZED COMMANDO group that will engage and set the order of discipline and order to tear down the first line of defense against the enemy.

Our job will be to establish a beachhead and occupy until the main forces can mobilize to secure the territory in Jesus’ Name.

Again, these are just a few of the people who Rick Perry is working with to put on his prayer rally.

Rick Perry Partners With 'Apostle' Who Blames America For September 11th Attacks

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Monday, 6/20/2011 10:42 am

Right Wing Watch has looked into organizers of Gov. Rick Perry's The Response from Cindy Jacobs, who blamed the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell for mass bird deaths in Arkansas, to televangelist John Hagee, who claimed God sent Hitler to be a “hunter” of Jews, and the rabidly anti-gay International House of Prayer. The Response's National Church and Ministry Mobilization Coordinator Doug Stringer, a Texas ‘Apostle’ who believes that the America only had it self to blame for the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 because the country rejected God and His protection:

In our gathering in Dallas, we realized there are three primary things in Scripture that are so disheartening to God that they cause Him to be ill, and they ultimately cause His presence to depart from His people:

1. Ritual or temple prostitution

2. The shedding of innocent blood on the altar

3. Licentiousness or moral looseness to the degree that it is “in your face,” including homosexuality

…

Immediately after the tragedy of 9/11, I was contacted by national media who asked me if I thought this was a judgment of God. Along with Anne Graham Lotz, I stated:

“WE ASKED GOD NOT TO BE IN OUR SCHOOLS, NOT TO BE IN OUR PUBLIC VENUES, NOT TO BE THE LORD OF OUR LIVES ANY MORE EXCEPT IN IMAGE. YET WE WANT TO BLAME GOD WHEN THINGS LIKE THIS HAPPEN?

“IT REALLY DEPENDS ON WHAT YOU MEAN BY ‘JUDGMENT’ OF GOD. IF YOU’RE SAYING GOD’S NOT PRESENT SO JUDGMENT COMES, THEN THE ANSWER IS YES. BUT THE BIBLE SAYS SIN PRODUCES DEATH. IT WAS OUR CHOICE TO ASK GOD NOT TO BE IN OUR EVERY DAY LIVES AND NOT TO BE PRESENT IN OUR LAND. THIS IS NOT AN ACT OF JUDGMENT, IT’S A WAKE-UP CALL. GOD IS LONGING TO BE IN THE MIDST OF HIS PEOPLE AGAIN.”

When I asked my friend David Ravenhill to address a gathering of pastors in Houston, he challenged us with this question: “Are you asking God to come as invited guest or as an inhabitant?”

I have many close friends who will invite me into their houses and tell me to make myself at home. While there, I know I can help myself to the kitchen, get up or go to bed when I want to, borrow a book from a bookshelf. But what would my friends think if I began painting the walls, changing out the furniture, or redecorating the living room to fit my own tastes?

This is, sadly, what we do with God. We want Him around, but only as our invited guest rather than One who has the right to create an atmosphere or an environment in which He wants to dwell.

My spiritual grandfather, Leonard Ravenhill, used to say, “Is the life you’re living worth Christ dying for?” We cannot live the kind of life worth the price our Savior paid unless we allow God in, not as a guest but as an inhabitant. We must open our hearts, our churches, and our public venues as dwelling places and allow Him to conform them to fit His preferences instead of our own. That is the difference between institutional Christianity and impartational relationship with the person of Jesus Christ.

The Response Organizers Say Rick Perry Is An Answer To Their Prayers

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Monday, 6/20/2011 10:05 am

The American Family Association is taking to defend the prayer rally, The Response, that they are hosting with Texas Governor Rick Perry. The AFA’s OneNewsNow today interviewed Tom Schlueter of the Texas Apostolic Prayer Network to defend the rally, whose spokesman said is meant to bring people of different faiths “to seek out the living Christ” and worship Jesus.

The Texas Apostolic Prayer Network is just one of many ‘New Apostolic’ organizations to work with Gov. Perry and the AFA on The Response, and the group calls on people to file “a decree of divorce from Baal,” renounce Free Masonry, and pray for the conversion of Muslims who are “rooted Deeply into Satan’s schemes.” And the group’s advisers include leading ‘prophets’ in the New Apostolic movement like Cindy Jacobs and Doug Stringer, who are endorsers of The Response, and Chuck Pierce.

Schlueter tells the AFA’s OneNewsNow:

Dr. Tom Schlueter of the Texas Apostolic Prayer Network says many citizens have been praying for a political leader to be bold enough to call the nation to its knees.

According to Schlueter, the event is decidedly apolitical…but Perry is also the answer of prayers that God will raise up a leader to bring the country to prayer:

"One of the things that we have been asking the Lord for many, many years has been a time when one of our political leaders will rise up and make this kind of a call to the state or to the nation," he shares.

As Rachel Tabachnick of Talk2Action notes, Schlueter once tied Hurricane Rita to the campaign to pass a constitutional amendment in Texas banning gay and lesbian couples from marrying:

Two weeks before Hurricane Rita hit Texas, the USSPN began a God-ordained national effort to bring the governmental rule of the King of Glory to our nation along the I-35 corridor. This effort began in the largest inland port in our nation, Laredo, Texas. Through Apostles Jay Swallow and Doug Stringer and Prophet Chuck Pierce, God positioned the Church of the region (Laredo, Texas, and Nuevo Laredo, Mexico) in unity and governmentally set the Church in order, commissioning the Church to develop and move with Kingdom authority. The United States of America will either be held together or divided by what occurs during the next three years along the I-35 corridor. What began with the Church of Laredo-Nuevo Laredo must continue all the way to the Canadian border. The Lord Jesus Christ wants the Church along the I-35 corridor to move in obedience to Him with unity, order, and authority.

That you are praying for Texas the week before the citizens of our state vote for or against God's definition of marriage is NO coincidence. The people of Texas and especially the Church of Texas have been summoned to decide between two "opinions". Will the Church "hesitate" between these two or will the Church follow God? The opposition is gathering their forces, meeting regularly, and planning strategically. We need the Lord to bring down fire from heaven to consume the plans of the enemy and to bring a downpour of rain to bless the efforts of those who are obediently and diligently trying to inspire and inform the Church of Texas about the upcoming vote concerning the marriage amendment.

PFAW Exposes Bryan Fischer With Lawrence O'Donnell

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Friday, 6/17/2011 11:58 am

Last night, People For the American Way senior fellow Peter Montgomery went on MSNBC's The Last Word With Lawrence O'Donnell to discuss the American Family Association's chief spokesman Bryan Fischer and his organization's work with Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

Make sure to read our new Right Wing Watch: In Focus on Fischer here.

And watch the interview with O'Donnell:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Four Minutes of Hate: The Naked Bigotry Of The AFA's Bryan Fischer

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 6/16/2011 8:13 pm

Our colleague Peter Montgomery is scheduled to appear on "The Last Word" with Lawrence O'Donnell tonight to discuss the upcoming "The Response" prayer event that Texas Governor Rick Perry is organizing with the American Family Association and stocking with anti-gay activists.

To coincide with this appearance, we are also releasing a comprehensive report we have written on the American Family Association's Bryan Fischer entitled "The GOP's Favorite Hate-Monger: How the Republican Party Came to Embrace Bryan Fischer" which chronicles Fischer's long record of unmitigated bigotry:

Responsible politicians wouldn’t fawn over an unhinged activist who opposes civil rights and religious freedom for minorities, wants to make being gay a crime and decries his personal rivals as enemies of God, right? But that is exactly what is taking place today in the Republican Party, as likely and declared GOP presidential candidates line up to win the approval of Bryan Fischer, a radio talk show host and spokesman for the American Family Association.

Fischer’s unabashed bigotry is on full display throughout his writings and on-air rants. His entire career is based on leveling venomous attacks against gays and lesbians, American Muslims, Native Americans, progressives and other individuals and groups he detests. He wants to redefine the Constitution to protect only Christians, persecute and deport all American Muslims, prohibit gays and non-Christians from holding public office and impose a system of biblical law.

While Fischer’s views are undeniably shocking, what is most disturbing is his growing influence within not only the Religious Right but also the Republican Party.

And to celebate it's release, we decided to put together this "best of" video featuring some of Fischer's greatest hits - enjoy: 

Right Wing Round-Up

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Tuesday, 6/14/2011 5:40 pm
  • PFAW Memo: Debate Takeaway: Not A Single Moderate in the GOP Field.

  • Benjy Sarlin @ TPM: Muslims, Medicare, And Mandates: The Top 5 Moments From The GOP Debate.

  • Alex Alvarez @ Mediaite: ABC News Questions Ties Between Newt Gingrich’s Charity And For-Profit Business.

  • Ryan @ Texas Freedom Network: Houston Clergy Respond to Gov. Perry.

  • Ben Dimiero @ County Fair: Is This What Passes For Accountability At Fox News?

  • Laura Conaway @ Maddow Blog: Marriage equality wins two. (New York State would make three).

  • David Weigel: The Most Offensive Political Ad Ever, This Hour.

  • Finally, most of us are going to be in Minneapolis for the Netroots Nation conference for the next several days, so posting here will probably be sporadic, at best, for the rest of the week.

Farah: Criminalize Homosexuality Just Like Murder, Child Molestation

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Monday, 6/13/2011 3:37 pm

Joseph Farah, the editor of WorldNetDaily, laments about the gains of the gay-rights movement. According to Farah, the Lawrence v. Texas decision which said that state anti-sodomy laws were unconstitutional was a tragedy for the country because it effectively stopped states from criminalizing sin. He claims that “from murder, to theft, to adultery, to child molestation,” people have “the right and the duty” to make laws banning “sinful behavior,” including sodomy. He insists that gay people and their allies are simply inventing new rights and that the LGBT community is only using the marriage debate “to demonstrate they are ‘oppressed’” because they have “no real interest in marriage”:

Take a 5,000-year-old institution ordained by God that has worked all over the world and trash it because some a group of sinful, prideful people with no real interest in marriage wants to use it to demonstrate they are "oppressed."

Keep in mind, it was the federal government that made all this inevitable with the Supreme Court case Lawrence v. Texas, in which it presumed to tell the people of that great republic they had no business enforcing laws against sodomy. Justice Antonin Scalia predicted in short order the ruling would open the door to something unimaginable a decade ago – same-sex marriage. He was right.

That's how sodomy moved from being a sin 10 years ago to being a "right."

It's not a right. It's a sin. And, in a civilized, self-governing society, when the majority of people ban sinful behavior – from murder, to theft, to adultery, to child molestation – they have the right and the duty to legislate against it. Courts have no business overruling the will of the people on such matters by dreaming up "rights" that are to be found nowhere in the Constitution, the Bible or the history of mankind.

The Response Spokesman Says Rick Perry's Prayer Rally Is Meant To Convert People To Christianity

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Monday, 6/13/2011 12:41 pm

When Texas Governor Rick Perry and the ultraconservative American Family Association announced a massive prayer rally, The Response, with the help of figures from the International House of Prayer and right-wing pastors Jim Garlow and John Hagee, the governor’s office denied that their ultraconservative views would be incorporated into the August 6th event. The governor’s spokesperson said that Perry’s “priority with this event is bringing people together.”

But during an interview with the AFA’s American Family Radio, The Response spokesman Eric Bearse said that the main objective of the prayer rally was to bring people to Christianity. Bearse, who was previously Rick Perry’s Director of Communications, claimed that people “regardless of their faith tradition or background” are invited to The Response to “seek out the living Christ” and feel the presence of Jesus:

Bearse: A lot of people want to criticize what we’re doing, as if we’re somehow being exclusive of other faiths. But anyone who comes to this solemn assembly regardless of their faith tradition or background, will feel the love, grace, and warmth of Jesus Christ in that assembly hall, in that arena. And that’s what we want to convey, that there’s acceptance and that there’s love and that there’s hope if people will seek out the living Christ. And that’s the message we want to spread on August 6th.

Perry's Office Says Fischer's Bigotry Has Nothing To Do With His Prayer Rally

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Friday, 6/10/2011 1:54 pm

Yesterday we noted that Bryan Fischer was getting angry that people were linking his unrelenting bigotry to Gov. Rick Perry's upcoming prayer rally because the American Family Association is playing in lead role in sponsoring the event.

In trying to defend himself, Fischer ended up going off on a rant about how gays were responsible for the Nazi Party and essentially proving the very point he was trying to refute.

So Mary Tuma of the Texas Independent contacted Perry's office to see what they had to say about this ... and once again Perry's office stood with the AFA and claimed that Fischer's bigotry in no way reflects upon the prayer rally Perry is organizing with the group:

When asked if Perry agrees with Fischer’s statements, spokeswoman Katherine Cesinger said, “Governor Perry is looking forward to the event. AFA is an organization that promotes safe and strong families. These controversies aren’t relevant to the event, Governor Perry is focused on what he is trying to accomplish, which is bringing America together in prayer for the nation.”

Asked again if Perry agrees with Fischer, she said, “This event is about prayer focused on bringing America together for challenges faced, these comments don’t have anything to do with this event.”

She added, “[Perry] is very clear with his faith. His priority with this event is bringing people together.”

She also said, “Those statements and other controversial statements made have nothing to do with what the Governor is trying to promote.”

John Hagee Will Be Participating In Perry's Prayer Rally

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Friday, 6/10/2011 10:36 am

Last night, we released a fact sheet on the groups and individuals that Texas Governor Rick Perry partnering with in organizing his "The Response" prayer rally ... and we can now add John Hagee to that list, as he reports in this video posted to his YouTube channel that he was part of a recent conference call for organizers and is asking supporters to join him at the event in August:

Right Wing Round-Up

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 6/9/2011 5:52 pm

Rick Perry Proud To Stand With the Bigots At The AFA

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Wednesday, 6/8/2011 10:11 am

As we noted earlier this week, Texas Governor Rick Perry was partnering with the American Family Association and a handful of other Religious Right activists to organize an all-day prayer rally in Houston in August called "The Response: A Call to Prayer for a Nation in Crisis."

Now, obviously the fact that Perry was willing to partner with the AFA was rather eye-raising, given the long history of offensive and bigoted things both the organization and its primary spokesperson, Bryan Fischer, have said.

But, as the Texas Tribune reports, Perry has no problem with any of that and is quite proud to stand with the AFA while Tim Wildmon asserted that anyone who doesn't share the AFA's views is going to hell:

Perry spokesman Mark Miner said the governor had been planning the event since December and was comfortable with the Tupelo, Miss.-based AFA as a host of the social conservative extravaganza. AFA is picking up the tab for the event, including the rental of Reliant Stadium in Houston, home to the NFL's Houston Texans.

"This is an organization that promotes safe and strong families," Miner said. "The governor looks forward to participating in this prayer service." Perry invited all of the nation's governors and various religious leaders to attend the Aug. 6 event. So far, Sam Brownback of Kansas, who ran unsuccessfully for the GOP presidential nomination in 2008, is the only governor who has confirmed he will attend. Miner said there would be more announcements about attendees forthcoming.

...

Former Perry speechwriter Eric Bearse is the chief spokesman for the event ... [and] said neither Fischer's writings nor any controversy surrounding the group were relevant to the event, whose mission is to get Americans to pray for God's help at a time of overwhelming economic and social challenges. Bearse said people of all faiths are invited to attend.

But Wildmon, AFA's president, stressed the Christian nature of the event and said people of other religions were "free to have their own events." He insisted his group did not hate anyone, but he said that people who do not embrace Christianity were headed for eternal damnation.

"It's not just Jews or Muslims," Wildmon said. "It's anybody that rejects the free gift of salvation through Christ. The Bible teaches there's heaven and hell. Those who believe go to heaven. Those who don't go to hell."

Right Wing Leftovers

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Tuesday, 6/7/2011 5:48 pm
  • Governors Mitch Daniels and Nathan Deal will not be attending Rick Perry's prayer rally.

  • Randall Terry has moved his based of operations to a compound out in West Virginia.

  • Someone should really investigate how much money, if any, these right-wing activists make off of these "fax your lawmaker" campaigns.

  • ABC changed the name of "Good Christian Bitches" to "Good Christian Belles," but Gary Cass is still opposed because the show is "bigoted attack [and] demeaning to all Christian women."

  • Finally, Bryan Fischer isn't going to let the fact that he actually approves of this ruling get in the way of attacking gays.

Right Wing Round-Up

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 6/6/2011 6:03 pm

Right Wing Leftovers

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 6/6/2011 5:50 pm
  • Rick Santorum has announced he is running for president and hopes to pick up Huckabee supporters.

  • Speaking of Huckabee, Michele Bachmann has tapped his former campaign director to be a part of her campaign.

  • Donald Trump just won't go away.

  • Liberty Counsel is defending "personhood" efforts in court.

  • Kansas Governor Sam Brownback is in for Rick Perry's prayer rally, but Michigan Governor Rick Snyder is not.

  • Finally, David Keene's ex-wife has pled guilty to stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from the American Conservative Union.
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