We’re glad to see that more Americans are learning the truth about the far right’s minister of propaganda — phony historian David Barton. Regular TFN Insider readers already know a lot about Barton and his Texas-based organization’s efforts to destroy basic constitutional protections for religious freedom in America. In addition, the Texas Freedom Network Education Fund’s 2006 report on the religious right in Texas exposed Barton’s politicization of religion.
Yesterday MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell turned his focus to Barton as well, asking why this fringe right-winger matters. Guest Peter Montgomery of People for the American Way gave O’Donnell’s audience a pretty accurate portrayal of the far right’s minister of propaganda. Here’s a little of what Montgomery had to say about Barton:
“He’s a historian in the same way that the creationists who teach that the world is 6,000 years old are scientists. they comb through history, looking for one little scrap of evidence, and they ignore mountains of evidence to the contrary.”
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“By making every issue a religious issue and claiming that God has one particular position — and Barton will tell you that the Bible mandates the far-right position on everything, not just abortion and gays but immigration and economic policies — he then says if you’re wrong, if you disagree with him, you’re not just wrong on the issues, but you’re anti-God. . . . We believe that’s dangerous and it’s bad for democracy. If you’re opponents are ‘evil,’ it makes it a lot harder to have a real conversation about policy and to reach compromise. It makes it very hard to solve are problems.”
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“I think a lot of Christians would not recognize the Bible as David Barton promotes it.”
