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Orlando Nightclub Shooting: Pat Robertson Says Let Liberals ‘Kill Themselves’ Over Muslims, Gays

By Marty Roppelt
Published on: 03:39 PST, Jun 15, 2016

The Orlando nightclub shooting motivated Pat Robertson to make some remarks on his 700 Club television show, says the Washington Times. On his Tuesday show, just days after an American Muslim massacred dozens at a gay nightclub, Robertson gave conservatives a bit of political advice. He pointed out the left is faced with a dilemma with policies that favor both the LGBT and Muslim communities. The two groups are at odds with each other, Robertson says, because in Islam, homosexuality is punishable by death. Robertson says conservatives should not weigh in on the issues now.

“The best thing to do is to sit on the sidelines and let them kill themselves,” Robertson said of liberals.

The shooting at Orlando’s Pulse nightclub took the lives of 49 people. The shooter, Omar Mateen, called 911 in the midst of his attack to pledge allegiance to ISIS.

Robertson praised Donald Trump for his stance on Muslim immigration. He claimed the presumptive Republican candidate is “riding high,” because he believes the Democrats are painted in a corner by their own policies.

President Obama refused to characterize the nightclub attack as carried out by “radical Islam,” reports CNN.

“Calling a threat by a different name does not make it go away,” Obama said.

The refusal rankles Republicans, who contend Obama is abetting “radical Islamic terrorism” by not identifying the attack as such.

Orlando’s nightclub shooting was a temptation Pat Robertson couldn’t resist. The Pulse massacre gave Robertson, who ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination in 1988, the opportunity to once again mix his interpretation of the Christian faith with politics. His history in politics is littered with controversial and often bizarre statements.

However, one statement that surfaced just after the Orlando shooting was exposed as false. Newslo reported that Robertson said the tragedy was God’s punishment for the recent SCOTUS ruling on same-sex marriage. Snopes torpedoed the report. But because of Robertson’s many wild past quotes, UK’s respected Mirror assumed the story was true and briefly posted it.

The Orlando nightclub shooting kicked Pat Robertson into gear, but it also brought out the best in others who profess the Christian faith. USA Today reports that some Chick-fil-A restaurants in Orlando opened on Sunday to provide free food and sweet tea for first responders and the multitudes of people who waited hours to donate blood.

The fast food chain was founded by Truett Cathy, whose policy was to stay closed on Sundays so his workers could rest, spend time with family, and worship if they chose. CEO Dan Cathy spoke out against gay marriage in 2012. In 2014, he said from then on he’d “leave it to politicians and others to discuss social issues.”

After the nightclub shooting, Cathy’s Chick-fil-A workers chose to show love and compassion rather than further political agendas.

Company spokeswoman Carrie Kurlander made a brief statement.

“The events in Orlando stirred our local restaurant owners and their teams to band together to provide nourishment to first responders as well as volunteers who donated blood,” she said. “We do not think this requires any recognition. It is the least we can do in this community we love.”

Another part of the community is the 1,900-member Delany Baptist Church two blocks away from the nightclub. While Robertson and others like him grabbed negative attention, many members of the Delany congregation were in the line to donate blood.

After the Orlando nightclub shooting, Pat Robertson and others used the tragedy to give voice to their beliefs and philosophies, both pro and con. Meanwhile, members of the community, including Christians, helped every way they could with everything from first response to food and even their own blood.

Do you think Pat Robertson, or anyone else, should have made political statements after the Orlando nightclub shooting?

[Photo by Steve Helber/AP Images]

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