Longtime religious broadcaster and former presidential candidate Pat Robertson has died. Robertson had turned a tiny Virginia television station into the far-reaching Christian Broadcasting Network. He hosted the network’s flagship show, the “700 Club,” for half a century. Robertson also mounted an unsuccessful presidential bid in 1988 and later founded the once-influential Christian Coalition. He had an enormous impact on American politics and religion, helping to cement an enduring alliance between conservative Christians and the Republican Party. Robertson also drew attention for his televised pronouncements of God’s judgment on America for everything from homosexuality to teaching evolution. Robertson died Thursday at the age of 93.
