Pat Robertson Controversies - Feminism, Homosexuality, Abortion and Liberalism

Feminism, Homosexuality, Abortion and Liberalism

Robertson is opposed to abortion and same-sex marriage. He has described feminism as a "socialist, anti-family political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians."

Many of Robertson's views mirror those of fellow evangelical pastor/activist Jerry Falwell, who made frequent appearances on The 700 Club. He agreed with Falwell when Falwell stated that the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks were caused by "pagans, abortionists, feminists, gays, lesbians, the American Civil Liberties Union and the People For the American Way."

The June 8, 1998 edition of his show, where Robertson denounced Orlando, Florida and Disney World for allowing a privately sponsored "Gay Days" weekend, also drew criticism from Americans United for Separation of Church and State. Robertson stated that the acceptance of homosexuality could result in hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, terrorist bombings and "possibly a meteor," prompting Americans United to criticize Robertson, saying it was "deplorable that Robertson is using the tragedy of these fires to promote his religious and political agenda." The resulting outcry prompted Robertson to return to the topic on June 24, where he quoted the Book of Revelation to support his claims. The first hurricane of the 1998 Atlantic hurricane season, Hurricane Bonnie, actually turned away from Florida and instead damaged the rest of the east coast. The area hardest hit by the hurricane was the Hampton Roads region, which includes Virginia Beach, where the Robertson's The 700 Club originates. While other hurricanes did hit Florida, none of them hit Disney World.

While discussing the Mark Foley scandal on the October 5, 2006 broadcast of the show, Robertson condemned Foley saying he "does what gay people do" and claiming that it would not hurt Republican chances in the elections, as “the church people understand forgiveness, they understand sin.”