McCain Defends Hagee: ‘He Said That His Words Were Taken Out Of Context’
McCain Defends Hagee: ‘He Said That His Words Were Taken Out Of Context’
On Bill Bennett’s radio show this morning, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said he repudiates “any comments” by hard-line conservative Pastor John Hagee “that are anti-semetic or anti-Catholic, racist, any other.” “I repudiate the words that create that impression,” said McCain.
But unlike his previous, half-hearted attempts to distance himself from Hagee, McCain also spoke up in the controversial pastor’s defense, saying that Hagee “said that his words were taken out of context”:
I will say that he said that his words were taken out of context, he defends his position. I hope that maybe you’d give him a chance to respond. He says he has never been anti-Catholic, but I repudiate the words that create that impression.
McCain then said he could look past Hagee’s bigoted comments because “when we were doing the No Surrender tour, he came and spoke on behalf of not surrendering in Iraq.”
Listen here:
Even if Hagee does support McCain’s vision of 100 years in Iraq, that does nothing to change the context of his past toxic comments. What context would absolve his belief that “Hurricane Katrina was, in fact, the judgment of God against the city of New Orleans” for hosting a gay pride parade?:
All hurricanes are acts of God, because God controls the heavens. I believe that New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God, and they are — were recipients of the judgment of God for that. The newspaper carried the story in our local area that was not carried nationally that there was to be a homosexual parade there on the Monday that the Katrina came. And the promise of that parade was that it was going to reach a level of sexuality never demonstrated before in any of the other Gay Pride parades. So I believe that the judgment of God is a very real thing
When McCain ran for president in 2000, he chastized then-Governor Bush for “seeking the support of Southern fundamentalists who have expressed anti-Catholic views,” saying that he “would condemn openly” such “agents of intolerance.” Now he says such intolerance is just “taken out of context.”
UPDATE: TPM has more of the “context” of Hagee’s intolerant comments here.
Transcript
BENNETT: I’ve got to ask you about something, as a Catholic. This was something a lot of Catholics were talking about. A couple of weeks ago, senator, you received the endorsement of San Antonio Pastor John Hagee. He’s written about my church, “there’s a clear record of history linking Adolf Hitler and the Roman Catholic church in a conspiracy to exterminate the Jews.” He’s called the Catholic church “a great prostitute,” except he used a stronger word. He’s called my church a “cult.” Your comment on this. There’s actually been a lot of talk about it.MCCAIN: Well, obviously I repudiate any comments that are anti-semetic or anti-Catholic, racist, any other. And I condemn them and I condemn those words that Pastor Hagee apparently…that Pastor Hagee wrote. I will say that he said that his words were taken out of context, he defends his position. I hope that maybe you’d give him a chance to respond. He says he has never been anti-Catholic, but I repudiate the words that create that impression. I will say, I’d like to say on his behalf, he’s been a very strong supporter of the state of Israel and when we were doing the No Surrender tour, he came and spoke on behalf of not surrendering in Iraq. So, but any comments that are made that are in anyway offensive then I repudiate those for all of the obvious reasons, Bill.
BENNETT: Good, good.
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scew Mcain. he wants more war, more death, more destruction. he’s george bush ,with media annoited graviatas.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:07 pmWhy do conservatives find it so difficult to speak? Why is it that they are constantly being “taken out of context?”
Apparently, it started with a disbelief in science, but has developed into an inability to use the English language.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:08 pm“My friends, I repudiate the possibility that some of you took Rev. Hagee’s salient but poorly-constructed remarks to possibly indicate that he may have some anti-Catholic sentiments which he does not.”
– John Sidney McCain; March 11, 2008
Straight Talk Express . . . indeed
March 11th, 2008 at 5:08 pmSee John. See John spin. Spin, John, spin.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:08 pmOnce again we see the strong moral fiber and the maverick status of John McCain as he stands by those strong principles. Yeah, as he bends over to kiss the +++ of the right wing conservatives.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:09 pm….and there is a lot of context to fat ass Hagee.
A∞Ω
March 11th, 2008 at 5:14 pmThis juggling high-wire contortionist act by McCain is getting to be most entertaining. By trying to be all things to all people, he is twisting himself like Plastic Man and hoping nobody will notice.
First, he sells out his most principled position on torture in order to whore himself to the far right. Next go his moderate positions on the environment and illegal immigration. Naturally, he’s trying to convince the moderates that he’s not really doing this.
Then he kisses up to Bush and Cheney in order to secure their base. But then releases a statement about how he is going to do things “differently” from Bush so as not to alienate voters who disapprove of the job Dubya has been doing.
Then he courts (and gets) endorsements from the Christian Taliban. Followed by claims of them “being taken out of context” in order to mollify horrified moderates.
His quest for endorsements and support has been getting wilder and wilder. Whose butt will he kiss next? White supremacist groups?
March 11th, 2008 at 5:16 pmThe residents of Pass Christian (pronounced Paz Christ ee ann), Mississippi would wonder why they got punished so much then. What a stupid thing to say or believe.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:18 pmThe correct context is what?
March 11th, 2008 at 5:23 pm“So why did God wait forty years…”
Comment by Southern Man
He has a thing for the number 40?
March 11th, 2008 at 5:26 pmThe correct context is what?
Comment by rehbock — March 11, 2008 @ 5:23 pm
I believe the correct context is “Johnny, you HAVE to take my endorsement because you’re desperate — you’ll never hang onto the evangelical sheeple without it.”
March 11th, 2008 at 5:29 pmObviously, McCain can’t read. If he could he could read for himself what this bigot has said again and again. The fact is the McCain lacks the guts to the right thing because he would rather have the radical evangelical vote than repudiate this bigot and reject his support. McCain is damaged goods. Not worth the price of my vote for sure.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:34 pmJohn McCain: “I will say that he said that his words were taken out of context”
LOL
March 11th, 2008 at 5:34 pmHagee is a confirmed grade A bigot. McCain soils himself by associating with this kind of trash. I have lost all respect for McCain as I see him whore himself out to one hateful constituency after another.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:35 pmComment by Southern Man — March 11, 2008 @ 5:24 pm
SM, that was surprisingly lucid and reasonable.
I knew you had it in you. Forgive me for calling you a bonehead.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:36 pmSo why did God wait forty years from our last two strong hurricanes, (Betsy and Camille) to strike? Sin (fun) happens everyday in the French Quarter Pastor. And why did God not just strike the Quarter? Why did he (and the Army Corps of Engineers) wipe out an entire area of the gulf coast, Mississippi included? F’ ing fool!
Comment by Southern Man — March 11, 2008 @ 5:24 pm
Why indeed? Hagee fails to acknowledge that hurricanes hit the southeastern states far more than the rest of the country — you know, the states that make up the Bible Belt. Damage from hurricanes over the past few years has far surpassed damage from earthquakes in California (a blue state), and damage from snow and ice storms in the northeast (mostly blue states). Is he trying to say that blue states are God’s chosen states?
It’s all hogwash, of course. Hurricanes happen to sinners and righteous people alike. If that’s not the case, we need an explanation from Hagee as to why Las Vegas has been spared from a category 5 hurricane. Same goes for other natural disasters. Hagee is just another dime-store Jesus exploiter.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:36 pmThe residents of Pass Christian (pronounced Paz Christ ee ann), Mississippi would wonder why they got punished so much then. What a stupid thing to say or believe.
Comment by Mr. Evil — March 11, 2008 @ 5:18 pm
Don’t forget that Trent Lott’s house got trashed by Katrina, too. Does Hagee consider him offensive to God as well?
March 11th, 2008 at 5:38 pmDon’t forget that Trent Lott’s house got trashed by Katrina, too. Does Hagee consider him offensive to God as well?
Comment by missmolly — March 11, 2008 @ 5:38 pm
Well I can’t speak for Hagee or God, but I certainly consider Trent Lott an offense to all humanity.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:42 pmHe repudiates the repudiation that was taken out of context regarding the repudiated comments that were made within context, but taken out of context.
See, clear as anything else McCain has ever said. Just wait long enough and McCain will take all sides on all issues. In that regard he’s the perfect republican.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:42 pmDon’t forget that Trent Lott’s house got trashed by Katrina, too. Does Hagee consider him offensive to God as well?
Comment by missmolly — March 11, 2008 @ 5:38 pm
I could certainly make a good case for that assessment.
But then, I don’t think Hagee and I have the same God in mind. His seems to be okay with Republican sinning and malfeasance.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:43 pmIs it me, or does that Hagee dude look like a big fat toad? Or Jabba the Hut in a blue blazer?
Lovingly,
NoMoreHusseinBush
PS — what family of Hobbits is living in McCain’s left (or is it right) jowel?
March 11th, 2008 at 5:45 pmfrom wiki
Hagee’s screed against the Roman Catholic Church in his book Jerusalem Countdown contained the following anti-Catholic speech:
Adolf Hitler attended a Catholic school as a child and heard all the fiery anti-Semitic rantings from Chrysostom to Martin Luther. When Hitler became a global demonic monster, the Catholic Church and Pope Pius XII never, ever slightly criticized him. Pope Pius XII, called by historians ‘Hitler’s Pope,’ joined Hitler in the infamous Concordat of Collaboration, which turned the youth of the [sic] Germany over to Nazism, and the churches became the stage background for the bloodthirsty cry, ‘Pereat Judea’[18]…. In all of his [Hitler’s] years of absolute brutality, he was never denounced or even scolded by Pope Pius XII or any Catholic leader in the world. To those Christians who believe that Jewish hearts will be warmed by the sight of the cross, please be informed—to them it’s an electric chair. (pp. 79-81)
The Roman Catholic Church, which was supposed to carry the light of the gospel, plunged the world into the Dark Ages…. The Crusaders were a motley mob of thieves, rapists, robbers, and murderers whose sins had been forgiven by the pope in advance of the Crusade…. The brutal truth is that the Crusades were military campaigns of the Roman Catholic Church to gain control of Jerusalem from the Muslims and to punish the Jews as the alleged Christ killers on the road to and from Jerusalem. (p. 73)
March 11th, 2008 at 5:45 pmKeep ‘em comin’ John.
March 11th, 2008 at 5:46 pmMore comments like this and you will prove your insanity, your intolerance, your willingness to sell out to anyone who promises you something in return.
#9 — the French Quarter was basically spared Katrina. Who knew God had the same deadeye aim as Cheney?
March 11th, 2008 at 5:46 pm“Taken out of context” is the blanket Repuke excuse for every ugly, stupid, bigoted, ignorant and hateful thing they ever say.
I’m sick of it, and I’m sick of *them*.
~L. Hussein Annie
March 11th, 2008 at 5:50 pmIts an occupation, how does one surrender in an occupation?? How can one surrender in Iraq when the country is supposed to be soverign?
March 11th, 2008 at 5:58 pmMcFlip McFlop McSame
Rinse and Repeat as many times as necessary
March 11th, 2008 at 6:04 pmBill Bennett has a radio show?
How does one listen to hour after hour of a wheezy, lisping blowhard pontificate about sin and morality?
March 11th, 2008 at 6:06 pmI believe that New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God, and they are — were recipients of the judgment of God for that.
To expound on Southern Mans logic. Why is god not destroying the islamofacists cities across the world? The are the heart of evil, are they not?
March 11th, 2008 at 6:13 pmThe Roman Catholic Church, which was supposed to carry the light of the gospel, plunged the world into the Dark Ages…. The Crusaders were a motley mob of thieves, rapists, robbers, and murderers whose sins had been forgiven by the pope in advance of the Crusade…. The brutal truth is that the Crusades were military campaigns of the Roman Catholic Church to gain control of Jerusalem from the Muslims and to punish the Jews as the alleged Christ killers on the road to and from Jerusalem. (p. 73)
Comment by RUCerious — March 11, 2008 @ 5:45 pm
You know, I’m having trouble finding much to argue with in this paragraph. The characterization of the Crusaders is a little much — there were certainly plenty of sincere and pious men who went through great hardship for their beliefs — but just look at what happened when they finally took Jerusalem.
If he’s suggesting that Baptists would never have been bad, fine, but is that what he said?
March 11th, 2008 at 6:14 pmBill Bennett has a radio show?
How does one listen to hour after hour of a wheezy, lisping blowhard pontificate about sin and morality?
Comment by ralph the wonder llama — March 11, 2008 @ 6:06 pm
He’s “beating” no ones listening to his do as I say not as I do morality
March 11th, 2008 at 6:16 pmGood point, gum, but try taking that argument out of the context of “Catholic vs. Protestant” and insert it into the context of “Christian vs. Muslim” and see how Hagee and his compatriots react.
March 11th, 2008 at 6:17 pmoops “betting”
March 11th, 2008 at 6:20 pmgummitch, how much of the first paragraph do you agree with…..I don’t know if the church sponsored the nazi youth or not but the Catholic church definatly turned it’s back on the plight of the Jews……
March 11th, 2008 at 6:23 pmbut just look at what happened when they finally took Jerusalem.
Comment by gummitch — March 11, 2008 @ 6:14 pm
They got smacked by a Kurd?
March 11th, 2008 at 6:23 pmThe Kurd came later but he did give them a good smacking.
March 11th, 2008 at 6:26 pm“Out of context” — the Repub quote to use when you totally screwed up, made racist or sexist remarks, maligned other religions, were blatantly homophobic….. well, Repubs, we don’t buy it at all. You are phonies. It is not “out of context” — it is exactly what you said & meant. What is really disgusting is that, having made their destructive statements, they don’t even try to be honest (not surprising) - but instead play the phoney “out of context” card. We don’t believe you!
March 11th, 2008 at 7:20 pmWhen everything one says is offensive, context loses it’s relevance. There is video of Rev. Hagee all over the net. The overwhelming majority of his statements serve to illustrate he’s an ignorant, bigoted, hard-headed, delusional, self-proclaimed prophet of the apocalypse.
He’s a lunatic of the most dangerous kind. One who preaches directly to 17,000 ignorant bigots, like himself, every Sunday. Rev. Hagee should not be provided a voice in public policy. He should be institutionalized until his delusions are dispelled.
Sen. McCain’s active pursuit of Rev. Hagee’s endorsement may be the single most damaging thing he’s done to his dwindling credibility. Heck, I’d love to see the Senator appoint the Reverend as his campaign manager. Let Hagee’s stench permeate the whole campaign.
March 11th, 2008 at 8:15 pmDo McCain even know the meaning of the word “context”??
John Hagee is a fundamentalist, a bigot a racist and a hatemongerer as proven by his words in context.
Hagee thinks that 20% of all muslims believe they are mandated to kill Christians and Jews. From which prominent Islamic scholar did Hagee learn this? A Palestinian terrorist he invited on his show. Hagee went on to warn about the grave threat of this 20%, these murderous 200 million muslims who according to Hagee wants to invade Israel and America and slaughter Christians and Jews.
How can McCain be “very honored” by this endorsement? And how is this not a major scandal in the US. Where I come from it would be career suicide for any politician to accept that kind of endorsement. Even our Christian Democrats would publically reject endorsements from crazy preachers like Hagee
March 11th, 2008 at 8:32 pmNow that McSenileDementia has alienated the Catholics, was that Hagee endorsement really worth it? Hagee believes that he and his followers can bring about the end times. He’s an “end justifies the means†kinda guy. So who is using who, here?
March 11th, 2008 at 8:33 pmHe’s an “end justifies the means†kinda guy.
Comment by Roket — March 11, 2008 @ 8:33 pm
Funny… you could say the exact opposite about Mark Foley (Perv-FLA)…
March 11th, 2008 at 9:29 pmthat the end justifies the means!
Funny… you could say the exact opposite about Mark Foley (Perv-FLA)…
that the end justifies the means!
Comment by The Republic of Stupidity — March 11, 2008 @ 9:29 pm
Uh, TRoS? You misidentified Foley. He’s a Republican. You identified him as a …
oh. never mind.
March 11th, 2008 at 9:41 pmThe staight talk circus is more like it. What a bunch of BIGOTS.
March 11th, 2008 at 10:48 pm