Robertson delivers speech on religion in U.S. politics

Students expecting to hear virulent anti-homosexual rhetoric or a hellfire-and-brimstone sermon during Rev. Pat Robertson's speech on "The Role of Religion in Modern American Politics" got a history lesson instead. The Whig-Cliosophic Society sponsored Robertson's talk, which was also supported by the ACLU.

A rain-soaked protest outside McCosh 10 by about 20 students, two wearing placards simply proclaiming "Fag" and "Dyke," others holding signs opposing Robertson's alleged views on Islam and Muslim-Americans, preceded the talk.

During his speech to a near-capacity audience, Robertson — a nationally known Baptist minister and Christian leader who has gone on the record with statements many have found offensive toward Muslims and homosexuals, among others — laid out the foundations for a conservative philosophy of government by drawing heavily on the writing and ideology of two Princetonians, John Witherspoon and James Madison.

In making his case, Robertson tied together the prophet Jeremiah, the French philosopher Rousseau, and the framers of the Constitution to argue that America was founded on the innate, God-given liberty to live out one's individual destiny.

"Don't be afraid to stand up and fight for those convictions," he said, "because they're so easily lost."

The fireworks came during the question-and-answer session following what many students saw as a fairly innocuous speech.

In phrasing their questions, students went after Robertson's purported views on Muslims, feminists, and homosexuals, and what one student suggested were Robertson's immoral business practices in Zaire.

But Robertson appeared nonplussed by the allegations and neatly deflected questions he did not wish to answer. With gray hair, a disarming Tidewater accent and a propensity for responding with personal, often humorous anecdotes, Robertson seemed at ease in front of the group. A police officer guarded each wing of the stage.

Robertson did speak out against what he called "quasi-socialists [who] have always wanted to manipulate other people, contrary to the Bible, to the American dream" in his defense of capitalism and America's "Manifest Destiny," though he tempered his statement by saying he did not believe in unrestrained commerce.

In response to a question alleging intolerance toward Muslims, Robertson attacked Wahhabism, an extremist branch of Islam supported by Saudi Arabia, then insisted that "this is not a peaceful religion. It isn't bigotry to tell the truth."

In an exclusive interview with The Daily Princetonian, Robertson said that although "good people have disagreed" over whether the nation is justified in launching a preemptive strike against Iraq, a Christian basis does exist for use of force: "[The Bible says] we are to lift the yoke of oppression from the downtrodden; that is a positive view," he said, then detailed a litany of human rights abuses under Iraq's president Saddam Hussein.

And while he claimed he "absolutely believed" there should be a separation of government and established church, he also asserted, "this is not a secular country. It is a country [with a] deeply religious heritage."

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Andrew Bruck '05, president of Whig-Clio, said the organization has a policy of not paying speakers, and Robertson agreed to talk without an honorarium.

Bruck emphasized the importance that a variety of perspectives plays in a liberal arts education. "Princeton would be a boring place if we only brought in speakers that 95 percent of the student body agreed with."

Duncan Sahner '06 said he detected a note of hypocrisy in the protests. "Those who most ardently tear him down fail to apply the same scrutiny to their own beliefs," he said.

One protester, Raquiba Huq '03, said she didn't expect an outrageous speech, but was more concerned with what Robertson had said in the past. "I hope our presence here made people more aware of both sides of the issue," she said.

Robertson, a 73-year-old graduate of Washington and Lee College and Yale Law School, founded the Christian Coalition, the Christian Broadcasting Network, and numerous charitable organizations. He lives in Virginia Beach, VA, where he works as Chancellor of Regents University, which he founded in 1977.

He went on to quote a saying of Mohammed about killing non-converts to Islam, then asked, "Is that peaceful?"