Our Evangelist President

Our Evangelist President

Facebook
Twitter
Email
Flipboard
Pocket

With America’s leading evangelist in the White House, is it any wonder that Christian preacher Franklin Graham and his relief agency, Samaritan’s Purse, are “poised and ready” to bring their missionary zeal to the Iraqi people?

Franklin Graham, Billy’s son, has, like his father, earned the title of “pastor to presidents.” He has also earned widespread criticism from Muslims for calling Islam a “very evil and wicked religion” bent on “world domination.” Such statements have made many people, not only Muslims, question the decision to give him a role in the Middle East. Nevertheless, Graham and his relief agency are about to head into Iraq, eagerly awaiting, in the words of Maureen Dowd, “to inveigle Iraqi infidels with a blend of kitchen pantry and Elmer Gantry.”

And, in the meantime, Donald Rumsfeld invited Graham to deliver this past week’s Good Friday prayer service to a packed audience at the Pentagon–over the objections of the lay leader of the Pentagon’s Muslim community, who charitably called Graham a “divisive’ figure, and a number of Muslim Pentagon employees. (Washington Post,” At Pentagon, Graham Lets Controversy Sit Silently.”)

Yes, let’s raise tough questions about Graham’s divisive statements and what they augur for his missionary work in Iraq. But, let’s remember that it’s our President, Evangelist #1, who bears ultimate responsibility for the religious right’s strength–at home and abroad.

Click here to listen to President Bush’s weekly radio address from April 19. It’s a sermon worthy of the best of Franklin (or Billy) Graham and may help explain why so many people around the world see the war in Iraq as part of a crusade against Islam.

Can we count on you?

In the coming election, the fate of our democracy and fundamental civil rights are on the ballot. The conservative architects of Project 2025 are scheming to institutionalize Donald Trump’s authoritarian vision across all levels of government if he should win.

We’ve already seen events that fill us with both dread and cautious optimism—throughout it all, The Nation has been a bulwark against misinformation and an advocate for bold, principled perspectives. Our dedicated writers have sat down with Kamala Harris and Bernie Sanders for interviews, unpacked the shallow right-wing populist appeals of J.D. Vance, and debated the pathway for a Democratic victory in November.

Stories like these and the one you just read are vital at this critical juncture in our country’s history. Now more than ever, we need clear-eyed and deeply reported independent journalism to make sense of the headlines and sort fact from fiction. Donate today and join our 160-year legacy of speaking truth to power and uplifting the voices of grassroots advocates.

Throughout 2024 and what is likely the defining election of our lifetimes, we need your support to continue publishing the insightful journalism you rely on.

Thank you,
The Editors of The Nation

Ad Policy
x