VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) 鈥 Pat Robertson, a religious broadcaster who turned a tiny Virginia station into the global Christian Broadcasting Network, tried a run for president and helped make religion central to Republican Party politics in America through his Christian Coalition, has died. He was 93.
Robertson's death Thursday was confirmed in an email by his broadcasting network. No cause was given.
Robertson鈥檚 enterprises also included Regent University, an evangelical Christian school in Virginia Beach; the American Center for Law and Justice, which defends the First Amendment rights of religious people; and Operation Blessing, an international humanitarian organization.
For more than a half-century, Robertson was a familiar presence in American living rooms, known for his 鈥700 Club鈥 television show, and in later years, his televised pronouncements of God鈥檚 judgment, blaming natural disasters on everything from homosexuality to the teaching of evolution.
The money poured in as he solicited donations, his influence soared, and he brought a huge following with him when he moved directly into politics by seeking the GOP presidential nomination in 1988.
of courting Iowa鈥檚 network of evangelical Christian churches, and finished in second place in the Iowa caucuses, ahead of Vice President George H.W. Bush.
His masterstroke was insisting that three million followers across the U.S. sign petitions before he would decide to run, Robertson biographer Jeffrey K. Hadden said. The tactic gave him an army.
鈥矵e asked people to pledge that they鈥檇 work for him, pray for him and give him money,鈥 Hadden, a University of Virginia sociologist, . 鈥砅olitical historians may view it as one of the most ingenious things a candidate ever did.鈥
Robertson later endorsed Bush, who won the presidency. Pursuit of Iowa鈥檚 evangelicals is now a ritual for Republican hopefuls, including those currently seeking the White House in 2024.
Robertson started the Christian Coalition in Chesapeake in 1989, saying it would further his campaign鈥檚 ideals. The coalition became a major political force in the 1990s, mobilizing conservative voters through grass-roots activities.
By the time of his resignation as the coalition's president in 2001 鈥 Robertson said he wanted to concentrate on ministerial work 鈥 his impact on both religion and politics in the U.S. was 鈥渆normous,鈥 according to John C. Green, an emeritus political science professor at the University of Akron.
Many followed the path Robertson cut in religious broadcasting, . In American politics, Robertson helped 鈥渃ement the alliance between conservative Christians and the Republican Party.鈥
Marion Gordon 鈥淧at鈥 Robertson was born March 22, 1930, in Lexington, Virginia, to Absalom Willis Robertson and Gladys Churchill Robertson. His father served for 36 years as a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Virginia.
After graduating from Washington and Lee University, he served as assistant adjutant of the 1st Marine Division in Korea.
He received a law degree from Yale University Law School, but failed the bar exam and chose not to pursue a law career.
Robertson met his wife, Adelia 鈥淒ede鈥 Elmer, at Yale in 1952. He was a Southern Baptist, she was a Catholic, earning a master鈥檚 in nursing. Eighteen months later, they ran off to be married by a justice of the peace, knowing neither family would approve.
Robertson was interested in politics until he found religion, Dede Robertson . He stunned her by pouring out their liquor, tearing a nude print off the wall and declaring he had found the Lord.
They moved into a commune in New York City鈥檚 Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood because Robertson said God told him to sell all his possessions and minister to the poor. She was tempted to return home to Ohio, 鈥渂ut I realized that was not what the Lord would have me do ... I had promised to stay, so I did,鈥 she told the AP.
Robertson received a master鈥檚 in divinity from New York Theological Seminary in 1959, then drove south with his family to buy a bankrupt UHF television station in Portsmouth, Virginia. He said he had just $70 in his pocket, but soon found investors, and CBN went on the air on Oct. 1, 1961. Established as a tax-exempt religious nonprofit, CBN brought in hundreds of millions, disclosing $321 million in 鈥渕inistry support鈥 in 2022 alone.
One of Robertson鈥檚 innovations was to use the secular talk-show format on the network鈥檚 flagship show, the 鈥700 Club,鈥 which grew out of a telethon when Robertson asked 700 viewers for monthly $10 contributions. It was more suited to television than traditional revival meetings or church services, and gained a huge audience.
鈥淗ere鈥檚 a well-educated person having sophisticated conversations with a wide variety of guests on a wide variety of topics,鈥 said Green, the University of Akron political science professor. 鈥淚t was with a religious inflection to be sure. But it was an approach that took up everyday concerns.鈥
His guests eventually included several U.S. presidents 鈥 Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and Donald Trump.
At times, his on-air pronouncements drew criticism.
He claimed that the terrorist attacks that killed thousands of Americans on Sept. 11, 2001 were caused by God, angered by the federal courts, pornography, abortion rights and church-state separation. Talking again about 9-11 on his TV show a year later, Robertson described Islam as a violent religion that wants to 鈥渄ominate鈥 and 鈥渄estroy,鈥 prompting President George W. Bush to distance himself and say Islam is a peaceful and respectful religion.
of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in 2005, although he later apologized.
Later that year, he warned residents of a rural Pennsylvania town not to be surprised if disaster struck them because they voted out school board members who favored teaching 鈥渋ntelligent design鈥 over evolution. And in 1998, he said Orlando, Florida, should beware of hurricanes after allowing the annual Gay Days event.
when he warned that towels in Kenya could transmit AIDS. CBN issued a correction, saying Robertson 鈥渕isspoke about the possibility of getting AIDS through towels.鈥
Robertson also could be unpredictable: In 2010, he called for ending mandatory prison sentences for marijuana possession convictions. Two years later, he said on the 鈥700 Club鈥 that marijuana should be legalized and treated like alcohol because the government鈥檚 war on drugs had failed.
Robertson condemned Democrats caught up in sex scandals, saying for example that President Bill Clinton turned the White House into a playpen for sexual freedom. But he helped solidify evangelical support for Donald Trump, dismissing the candidate's sexually predatory comments about women as an attempt
After Trump took office, Robertson interviewed the president at the White House. And CBN welcomed Trump advisers, such as Kellyanne Conway, as guests.
But after President Trump lost to Joe Biden in 2020, Robertson said Trump was living in an 鈥渁lternate reality鈥 and should 鈥渕ove on,鈥 news outlets reported.
Robertson鈥檚 son, Gordon, succeeded him in December 2007 as chief executive of CBN, which is now based in Virginia Beach. Robertson remained chairman of the network and continued to appear on the 鈥700 Club.鈥
after half a century in 2021, with his son Gordon taking over the weekday show.
Robertson also was founder and chairman of International Family Entertainment Inc., parent of The Family Channel basic cable TV network. Rupert Murdoch鈥檚 News Corp. bought IFE in 1997.
Regent University, where classes began in Virginia Beach in 1978, now has more than 30,000 alumni, CBN said in a statement.
Robertson wrote 15 books, including 鈥淭he Turning Tide鈥 and 鈥淭he New World Order.鈥
His wife Dede, who was a founding board member of CBN, . The couple had four children, 14 grandchildren and 24 great-grandchildren, CBN said in a statement.
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Former Associated Press reporters Don Schanche and Pam Ramsey contributed to this story.
