For months, John McCain has faced questions about his associations with radical religious televangelists like John Hagee and Rod Parsley. And for months, McCain refused to disassociate himself from the extremists, even going so far as to defend the hate-filled rhetoric (McCain said Hagee had been “taken out of context”) and repeatedly say he was “honored” and “glad” to have their support.
Yesterday, after the latest revelations that Hagee believed Hitler was fulfilling God’s will, McCain gave up.
Senator John McCain on Thursday rejected the endorsements of two prominent evangelical ministers whose backing he had sought to shore up his credentials with religious conservatives.
Mr. McCain repudiated the Rev. John C. Hagee, a televangelist, after a watchdog group released a recording of a sermon in which Mr. Hagee said Hitler and the Holocaust had been part of God’s plan to chase the Jews from Europe and drive them to Palestine.
Later in the day, he also rejected the endorsement of the Rev. Rod Parsley of the World Harvest Church of Columbus, Ohio, whose anti-Muslim sermons were broadcast on ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Thursday.
Specifically on Hagee’s sermon on the Holocaust, McCain said, “Obviously, I find these remarks and others deeply offensive and indefensible. I did not know of them before Reverend Hagee’s endorsement, and I feel I must reject his endorsement as well.”
A few hours later, after an ABC News report on Parsley started making the rounds, an AP reporter asked McCain about Parsley’s belief that the United States was created in order to destroy Islam. “I believe that even though he endorsed me, and I didn’t endorse him, the fact is that I repudiate such talk, and I reject his endorsement,” McCain said.
It’s about time.
Keep in mind, McCain was all-too pleased to not only seek out the support of these religious extremists, but to accept their endorsements, praise their “leadership,” and even campaign alongside them. McCain now claims he didn’t realize how crazy Hagee and Parsley really are, but that’s unsatisfying — neither he nor his campaign Googled them for the year in which they sought the preachers’ support?
More importantly, even if we accept the notion that McCain and his aides wooed pastors they knew nothing about, McCain has been confronted with Hagee’s and Parlsey’s radical record for months. The Republican presidential candidate continued to embrace their endorsements anyway, until yesterday when McCain’s campaign ran out of spins.
As Kevin put it, McCain “only cared when it showed up on network TV and became an embarrassment to him. So much for a different kind of politics.”
It’s been an interesting journey for McCain. In the ’90s, McCain didn’t mind associating with the religious right, and remained close with the Christian Coalition. In 2000, McCain moved in the opposite direction, distancing himself from the religious right and calling the movement’s leaders “agents of intolerance.” In 2007, McCain switched back, embracing far-right religious extremists, and defending their rhetoric. Yesterday, McCain seemed anxious to shift yet again, keeping pastors he’d sought out at arm’s length.
In terms of political consequences, dropping Hagee like a hot potato may annoy some of his ardent supporters, but Hagee’s sphere of influence is strongest in Texas, where McCain would likely be favored to beat Obama anyway. Parsley, however, is a pretty serious player in Ohio, which will be far more competitive.
Will Hagee and Parsley see the denunciations as insulting or pro forma? Will they take offense and begin railing against McCain or will they see yesterday’s announcement with a wink and a nod?
Post Script: Just as an aside, you know who looks really foolish now? Joe Lieberman, who went on national television to defend Hagee just a few days before McCain cut Hagee loose. Ol’ Joe has a poor sense of timing.