Robertson's Islam remarks puts McDonnell on spot

[Blue_Tires]

Fresh off his landslide victory in the race for Virginia governor, Bob McDonnell is already being forced to confront how he plans to handle his friendship with minister Pat Robertson, a longtime ally but also a controversial figure, once he takes office.

Virginia Muslims are calling on McDonnell to disavow comments made last week by the Christian broadcaster from Virginia Beach in response to the shootings at Fort Hood, Texas. Robertson asserted that Islam is "not a religion" but a "violent political system" and that those who practice it should be treated like members of a communist or fascist party.

Robertson has made similar assertions about Islam before, but the recent comments came only a couple of weeks after he made a late $25,000 donation to McDonnell's campaign and just days after he attended McDonnell's election-night party. He told a reporter there that he would be visiting McDonnell in his hotel suite while awaiting election results.

During the campaign, McDonnell played down his ties to Robertson, whom he has known since he attended the law school Robertson founded in the late 1980s. McDonnell tried during the race to convince Virginians that he was a social conservative who could speak more broadly to issues that cross party lines.

But Robertson's comments last week suggest he might prove to be a political liability as McDonnell, a Republican, seeks to turn his bipartisan campaign promises into a governing coalition.

http://hamptonroads.com/2009/11/robertsons-islam-remarks-puts-mcdonnell-spot

[tularetom]

1. He only won because the Dems nominated a buffoon

[Blue_Tires]

2. ttt