Monday, January 18, 2016

Trump Prostitutes Himself at Liberty University

Brain washed sheeple at Liberty University
In my view, one of the biggest blights on Virginia - perhaps a putrid boil is a better analogy - is Liberty University which is starting to make Pat Robertson's Regent University look almost normal in comparison notwithstanding Robertson's regular outbursts of batshit crazy verbal diarrhea.   An appearance at Liberty University has become de rigueur among Republican candidates seeking to shamelessly prostitute themselves to ignorance embracing, racist Christofascists.  Today, Donald Trump prostituted himself at Liberty and seemingly was well received by the authoritarian loving religious extremists at the so-called university.  The Daily Beast looks at the nauseating spectacle.  Here are article highlights:

Evangelicals weren’t supposed to like Donald Trump. He’s boasted about never asking God for forgiveness, exhibited total Biblical illiteracy, and had as many wives as an Old Testament patriarch.

But none of that matters. When the billionaire mogul spoke at Liberty University this morning, he got a rapturous welcome that showed just how much Evangelicals love him—and why. The obsequiously warm reception he received may upend conventional wisdom about what conservative Christians want from their presidential candidates. And that’s great news for Trump.

The boisterous crowd—some of whom woke up at 3:30 a.m. to get good seats—proceeded to worship Trump.

Trump’s performance certainly drew some sneers, especially when an attempt to pander fell flat after Trump mispronounced a Biblical reference as “Two Corinthians” instead of “Second Corinthians.” But despite that, his overwhelmingly warm reception confirms that he’s just as competitive as any other Republican among Evangelical Christian voters.

Jerry Falwell Jr., the university president and son of Moral Majority founder Jerry Falwell, introduced Trump to the crowd and left no doubt about his feelings for the golden-haired mogul.

The implication was clear as a bell: Evangelical Christians shouldn’t stress about Trump’s personal life.  But Falwell didn’t just compare Trump to Reagan; he also said Trump reminded him of his father, generous and pragmatic. And he compared Trump’s presidential campaign to the university itself.

He [Trump] spent the bulk of the speech talking about Iran, ISIS, and the sad mendacity of the national media (“Twenty-five percent are good. Two percent are great.”). Said sad national media, he argued, has failed to report on just how support Trump has won.

“You’re not getting a real picture of the silent majority, which Jerry Sr. had something to do,” he said. “And that’s a phrase you should be really cognizant of. Because it is a silent majority, but I think I’m gonna up it a little bit because it’s no longer so silent. It’s really a noisy majority.”

And Trump’s pitch was perfect.  “He spoke to the Liberty audience and culture almost as if he was a part of it,” said Johnnie Moore, former senior vice president at the school, “as if he had been a part of it – a graduate or an alumnus or someone who had had kids go there.”

Moore said that’s because -- despite his “Two Corinthians” flub -- he came off as authentic.  “Not a single person in that crowd this morning thought, I wonder if he’s lying to me,” Moore said.

He noted that Evangelical Christians have two basic approaches to politics: Some want candidates to have as much in common with them as possible -- they embrace long-shot contenders like Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum because they share their identical convictions about Christianity’s role in public life. The Falwells aren’t in that school of thought. Rather, they like winners, even if that means backing candidates who used to be pro-choice and have a few divorces under their belt. That’s why Jerry Falwell Sr. made good with John McCain after the Arizonan called him an “agent of intolerance,” and it’s why their family was so undyingly loyal to the Bushes -- even as George H. W. Bush struggled to win Evangelical support.

The Falwell family hasn’t lost its single-minded interest in winning, and that’s why Jerry Jr. had such kind words for Trump.  “It was clear that he would be extremely comfortable if Trump was the candidate,” Moore said.


I find it laughable that students did not feel as if Trump was lying too them.  All they hear from the likes of Falwell and "godly folks" at Liberty University is lies and a rejection of objective reality.  These students are confronted daily with liars and falsely pious demagogues who win their ignorant respect.  They are the last people to see through Trump's manipulation.  

 

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