February 13th 2020

By Bill Berkowitz

Evangelist lambastes Super Bowl Halftime Show’s Jennifer Lopez and Shakira, as being poor role models yet consistently spares Trump

"I moved on her actually. You know she was down on Palm Beach. I moved on her and I failed. I’ll admit it. I did try and fuck her. She was married. … I moved on her very heavily. In fact, I took her out furniture shopping. She wanted to get some furniture. I said, ‘I’ll show you where they have some nice furniture.’ I took her out furniture– I moved on her like a bitch, but I couldn’t get there. And she was married. Then all of a sudden I see her, she’s now got the big phony tits and everything. She’s totally changed her look. … I’ve got to use some Tic Tacs, just in case I start kissing her. You know I’m automatically attracted to beautiful — I just start kissing them. It’s like a magnet. I just kiss. I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. … Grab them by the pussy. You can do anything."

– Donald Trump

Franklin Graham’s ecosystem, often as expressed in Facebook posts and Fox News interviews, is rife with bigotry, intolerance, self-righteousness and disinformation. His oft-expressed feelings towards the LGBTQ community is laced with vitriol. The man who has aspired to wear his father, Billy Graham’s mantle as America's preacher, is every bit the hypocrite as his fellow disgraced evangelists Jim Bakker, Jimmy Swaggart and Ted Haggard.

Graham recent twaddle had him calling out the Super Bowl Halftime Show’s Jennifer Lopez and Shakira as being poor role models for young girls. 

The head of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, Samaritan’s Purse, and early and enthusiastic supporter of all things Trump, posted the following on Facebook:

I don’t expect the world to act like the church, but our country has had a sense of moral decency on prime time television in order to protect children. We see that disappearing before our eyes. It was demonstrated tonight in the Pepsi Super Bowl Halftime Show—with millions of children watching. This exhibition was Pepsi showing young girls that sexual exploitation of women is okay. With the exploitation of women on the rise worldwide, instead of lowering the standard, we as a society should be raising it. I’m disappointed in Pepsi and the NFL.

The man who sees no wrong horrific enough, no deed evil enough, and no rhetoric base enough to consistently criticize President Trump, is “heroically” speaking out against Pepsi — the halftime show’s sponsor — The NFL, and Lopez and Shakira. 

Was Graham offended when Trump spread the “birther” rumors about President Obama? Was Graham offended by Trump’s payoff to Stormy Daniels? Was Graham offended by Trump’s “grab them by the pussy” remarks? Was Graham offended when he heard that dozens of women had charged Trump with sexual harassment? Was Graham offended by the dirty trickster, and professional liar, Roger Stone, claiming that he found Jesus thanks to Graham?

To be fair, when Trump officials claimed that a particular bible verse was driving its policy of separating families, Graham told the Christian Broadcasting Network that it was “disgraceful,” “terrible to see families ripped apart” and that he didn’t “support that one bit.”

In April of last year, Graham condemned Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg for being gay, Christian and married. In a series of tweets, he attacked Buttigieg for remarks he has made about being a gay Christian. 

"Presidential candidate & South Bend Mayor @PeteButtigieg is right—God doesn't have a political party," Graham wrote. "But God does have commandments, laws & standards He gives us to live by. God doesn't change. His Word is the same yesterday, today & forever." 

Graham added, "Mayor Buttigieg says he's a gay Christian. As a Christian I believe the Bible which defines homosexuality as sin, something to be repentant of, not something to be flaunted, praised or politicized. The Bible says marriage is between a man & a woman—not two men, not two women."

Because of his unremitting anti-LGBTQ vitriol, Graham, has been banned from speaking at all 8 of the locations he had booked for an upcoming United Kingdom tour. According to NBC News, he “is scrambling to find new venues.”

“This attack on me is an attack on religious freedom and freedom of speech,” Graham said in an interview with Religion News Service. “For any Christian group that wants to rent a venue that believes the Bible is the word of God, they’re in danger of being canceled.”

Graham’s anti-gay vitriol runs long and deep. According to an editorial in The Charlotte Observer, “In the last six months alone, Graham has singled out the LGBTQ community in at least 19 Facebook posts. He’s railed against the ‘LGBT agenda,’ mocked gender identity, and frequently reminded folks that marriage should be between a man and a woman only. That’s far more time than he spent on sins like pride and lust — or the bigger ones like stealing or bearing false witness or coveting thy neighbor’s wife. The only transgression that gave the LGBTQ community a run for its money in being singled out as a sin was abortion, which fell a few posts short.”

The editorial ended with: “So why do his Facebook posts matter? Because the LGBT community is seeing a regression under this president and in state legislatures that again are trying to use faith as a justification for discrimination. Graham’s outsized obsession with the LGBTQ community is a reminder of the danger that its members still face. Like the UK, we need to be vigilant in standing up to it.”

After an editorial in Christianity Today magazine thoroughly rebuked Trump and called for his removal, Graham, vigorously defended the president, criticizing the magazine founded by his father. At a White House ceremony, Trump thanked Graham for having "fought very hard for us" since the editorial was published.

Since Graham was so incensed by what he saw at halftime, will he criticize Donald Trump Jr.’s girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle, who was spotted dancing during the big performances? Don’t hold your breath!