It is so telling that Steve Bannon was instrumental in hooking up Mr Sekulow
with the assorted grifters named in this piece. I cannot imagine a more smarmy gathering than the Crouches, Trump, Bannon, Robertson and Sekulow “laying hands” on one another and pretending they, individually or collectively, point the way toward making America great.
I am just a simple man who had the good fortune to be educated mostly by Catholic nuns, and otherwise by very good public school teachers. I don’t go to church now because the likes of these people, many evangelicals, and most Republicans I have inter-acted with have convinced me there cannot possibly be a God. If there is s/he should have stopped before making people because we are ruining it all.
9
Read Think Progress' article, "The very shady way Trump's new lawyer got very, very rich." This guy Sekulow is Trump's doppelganger!
7
What in the world is a "Religious Liberty case"? I'm guessing it's code for pushing a minorities Christian Fundamentalism on the rest of us?
6
"Leave all your worldly possessions and follow me" - What happened to the followers of Jesus? Taking from the downtrodden to build an empire under the guise of Christianity is evil. This country has to start ensuring that our children learn to think for themselves so that these devils can no longer speak of "sacrificial donations" when it is really tax free gifts to they are soliciting. Obviously there is no chance of the White House stepping in to end this sham. Supreme Court? Are you kidding?
3
Another fallen member of my people who has aligned himself with the Rough Beast and forgotten our teachings, most notably, "Put not your trust in princes." Psalm 146:3 KJV
4
What is referred to here as *religious liberty* sure feels like oppression to those of us who do not share Sekulow’s religious views; in particular the insistence upon imposing those views on everyone. My ancestors came to America in 1631 fleeing persecution for their religion. The reason we have the antidisestablishment clause is to protect us from scamming, scheming, persecuting hypocrites like Sekulow and his current client.
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These "Jump for Jesus" evangelicals have no idea what Jesus actually taught. That this guy can lie again and again and again, as he supports trump in his fraud, lying, and crimes, is proof of that.
It's just wrong that these people have so badly corrupted actual Christianity.
7
It's no surprise the current White House occupant's sycophants won't appear before the Judiciary Committee. The first sentence they would utter in support of his disinformation screeds would immediately constitute perjury.
1
Religious hypocrisy is profitable; who knew?
Jesus is hanging his head in shame...
1
"[Skulov] was recommended by the erstwhile Trump adviser Stephen K. Bannon to help guide Mr. Trump’s legal response to the investigation by the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III."
That tells me alI I need to know about Sekulov.
Someone please examine Bannon's current anti-impeachment efforts, ties to Trump, Sekulow, and to Breitbart. Or maybe re-examine?
Surely all those personal lawyers are tripping over each other? The only thing saving Trump right now is his White House counsel's absurd claim that Trump has "absolute immunity."
3
It’s just surreal that our president is connected to so many shady characters and something you might expect from a third world country.
This embarrassment for the “Leader of the Free World” that needs to end in 2020 and it’s a pipe dream to think it’s going to happen by impeachment.
4
I have no opinion about Mr. Sekulow, although certainly this article describes sketchy behavior that would make me shy away from hiring him if I were looking for attorney.
That said, an unbiased news story that mentions that its subject was "sued for fraud and securities violations" must also report the outcome of the suits. To do otherwise is to traffic in innuendo, which has become all too familiar in what are supposed to be straight news stories in the NYT.
1
I agree that The NY Times should have reported the outcomes of the lawsuits cited in the article. So NYT, if you’re listening—-it’s not too late to correct that oversight. Moreover, to be consistent with a tradition of excellent investigative reporting, the Times should more stringently and more transparently identify statement of opinion when introduced into its news reports.
3
Imagine my surprise to learn there are two Jay Sekulos - the bizarre zealot I know from the " ACLJ, " and another, a mystery man, described by Ms. Williamson.
1
"Jay Sekulow is a trusted ..."
Trusted? Not by me he isn't.
6
Sekulow and ACLJ have worked tirelessly to undermine the rights of LGBTQ people. Sekulow has even tried to overturn Lawrence v. Texas (which banned anti-gay sodomy laws). There is no subtlety in Sekulow's enterprise. ACLJ's website has been explicitly homophobic.
5
Jay Sekulow is a Roman Catholic convert from Judaism. Engaged in the business of making a name for himself from conservative mass media legal machinations and mayhem.
Trump has alwaus masterfully managed to assemble a team of the most ignorant, immoral, incompetent and unethical lawyers in America.
From Roy Cohn to Michael Cohen to Rudy Giuliani to Jay Sekulow to Bill Barr to the new White House Counsel the only breaks were Don McGahn and Jeff Sessions.
6
He's just another "televangelist" who hides behind a cloak of religious righteousness, but are nothing but liars, thieves, narcissists & greedy for power who have no shame until they're exposed.
8
Unfortunately, it's guys like Sekulow who give attorneys a bad rap. What an opportunist! Ironically, the man is a self-proclaimed Christian. But he has no moral convictions or integrity. And he works for Donald Trump. Go figure!
6
He makes me think of a televangelist every time he speaks. So obviously dishonest
4
The sub-text to the headline that Sekulow is "more experienced in religious liberty cases" is so misleading as to qualify as Trumpian double-speak. Sekulow's experience is largely confined to cases designed to deprive people of their religious freedom by forcing everyone to adhere to far political/Christian right dogma.
Depriving people of the right to work because they do not follow their employer's religious dictates is not promoting religious liberty.
Depriving people of the right to follow their own religious and/or ethical principles is not promoting religious principles.
Sekulow's real specialty is creating false victimhood arguments used to deprive "others" (anyone who does not follow his client's exact interpretation of the Bible) of their religious liberty.
7
Had this president gathered all of these lawyers at the beginning and followed their council we might not be reading about impeachment at all.
Religious Charities and Foundations seem to be a good way to have your cake and eat it too. Jay takes it one step further in Christian America by claiming what seems to be an Oxymoron for those not familiar with Messianic Judaism.
1
@Bob Small point of order.
Jews For Jesus aren't Jews; they're Messianic Christians. The whole thing about being Jewish is that we're waiting for the Messiah to arrive. And waiting and waiting and waiting... We're a patient people.
Also, Jews don't proselytize. Not our thing. You want to become a Jew, you really have to want it, jump through hoops. Just saying you want to be Jewish because you're marrying into the faith isn't enough.
Because of this, I sincerely doubt Vanky is really Jewish. She may go through the motions, but I suspect Lookstein (the rabbi who handled her 'conversion') got a nice donation in exchange for not asking too many questions.
2
I’d like to see the flow chart used by these nutters that tells them which way to bend truth and/or interject their brand of so called Christianity.
5
"Mr. Sekulow; his brother Gary; his father, Stanley; his law partner Stuart Roth; and their business associates were sued for fraud and securities violations. They declared bankruptcy, leaving a trail of unpaid debts.
Within a year of his bankruptcy, Mr. Sekulow reinvented himself as a litigator for the Christian right. As general counsel for Jews for Jesus, he argued before the Supreme Court and won a 9-to-0 victory in 1987, successfully making the case that by banning Jews for Jesus from distributing pamphlets at Los Angeles International Airport, the Board of Airport Commissioners violated the group’s First Amendment rights."
Only the best cranks, creeps, cretins, cravens and criminals !
Who said the Republican tent isn't big and wide ?!
15
Like all televangelists, Sekulow is clearly a con man bilking vulnerable people by promoting religious mythology and superstition.
A perfect fit for Trump.
12
Jay Sekulow deserves the same respect trump deserves, none.
He also deserves the same fate as trump, removal from office. Or in Sekulow’s case disbarment. The cast of the trump reality show is a collection of empty shells. Let us prevent a renewal of this show for a second season. Vote Blue, Believe in America.
11
This article skates away from saying the obvious: Mr. Sekulow runs a certain kind of business in which, by regular radio and TV appearances on Christian networks, he solicits millions of dollars for supposedly high brow, religious projects, but ends up pocketing a large amount of that cash himself. It's good work, if you can get it, but it's surely not the Lord's work, and it likely wouldn't stand up to careful legal scrutiny.
8
Any attorney representing Donald Trump is immediately suspect, unfortunately, of not carrying out his or her responsibilities in accordance with either their constitutional duties or the personal oath they took as attorneys. Rudy Guiliani, William Barr and Pat Cipollone are examples of this. These lawyers all seem to come under the spell of and bow down before Donald Trump and have no problem of ruining their reputations and violating legal principles in their zeal to please Mr. Trump. That these attorneys have not had their character and fitness as attorneys investigated by their bar licensing bodies is absolutely incredible. Many other attorneys have been investigated and have lost their licenses for far less. The lawyers representing Donald Trump are not special or different because of who they work for and they are completely responsible for their actions as such.
19
Reads like the typical actions of a convert: justifying the conversion by demonstrating extremes. Nothing is as dangerous as a convert.
16
Sekulow is an opportunist, and Trump is an opportunity. The reverse is true as well.
Neither has ethics or a conscience.
45
Coincidence: "Sekulow" evokes "secular," which is what Mr. Sekulow's work really is, thinly veiled in religion/religiosity. I blame him for much of the obliteration of the line between church and state, obliteration that this country now suffers from grievously. It strikes me that he is neither Jewish nor Christian, having violated the values of both religions with his hard right-wing views.
18
The rise of evangelicalism, and the role that this is playing in politics and at the White House is worrisome. Sekulow, Pompeo, Pence, Perry, Carson and others consider themselves Christians and make decisions based on their faith. It hardly matters that everything Trump is and does is completely contrary to the teachings of Jesus. Hard core evangelicals believe that Trump was "destined" to be president and that many of his actions (like moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem) fulfill prophecies about the "second coming". The core of these evangelical beliefs exclusionary, sexist and racist. But what's even more important is what our Constitution says about the role of religion in politics - namely that there is, or should be, a separation of church and state. It is dangerous to lose sight of this.
24
Mr. Sekulow….“my suspicion that Jesus might really be the messiah was confirmed.”
Mr. Sekulow says he’s a Christian…….as a Christian and believer of Jesus he should be amplifying Jesus Christ instead of White House talking points and deception as well as the rest of the Evangelicals.
47
Who writes these headlines? Jay Sekulow is not telegenic. He is weird looking and creepy. His comments are generally sophistries or outright lies. He sold his soul for the "honor" and power to represent Trump. Other than that ...
60
Maybe Rick Perry knows something we don’t.
9
@db2
He thought he knew his limits and when to jump a sinking ship. Time may show he waited too long and te undertow is going to get him.
Which reminds me we need to remember to take a closer look at the crook from OKC who built a "cone of silence" telephone system. He left last year and surely is implicated in the corrupt use of Our offices of government for self enrichment. I cannot recall his name at the moment.
8
I don't understand why Sekulow has not been disbarred. Michael Cohen said that he was advised by Sekulow to lie about Russia; Sekulow threatened to find a person who criticized him and inflict bodily harm, and he clearly has shown no respect for the Rule of Law with Trump as his client.
And when it comes to evangelists he's represented, that is just yet another example of how conning people is a lucrative - and criminal - enterprise for both Sekulow's clients and Sekulow himself.
To the Republican Senators endorsing Trump and intent on giving his criminal activities a pass. You are certainly "entitled" to destroy your own party, but you are not "entitled" to destroy this country. You are a disgrace to this nation.
137
Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. When Sekulow goes, that will signal the end of Trump.
71
It is long past time to come to grips with the tax exempt status of religious organizations. We could start by enforcing already existing IRS regulations regarding the promotion of political candidates from the pulpit etc.
My own father was a pastor for 35 years and in accordance with the requirements of the Seventh-day Adventist church, he maintained the Separation of Church and State and never - ever - brought politics into his role as pastor.
76
From an article on Sekulow:
"A pair of religious charities led by Sekulow “paid out more than $33 million to members of Sekulow’s family and businesses they own or co-own” over the course of a little more than a decade, according to a 2011 report by The Tennessean’s Bob Smietana. One of Sekulow’s non-profits “paid a total of $2,374,833 to purchase two homes used primarily by Sekulow and his wife,” according to a 2005 expose by Legal Times’ Tony Mauro."
Another right-wing con man profiting from religion and, like Giuliani, trying to profit by association with Trump.
96
@Pat They want to convert people so that they can turn around and ask for 20% of your income as a donation to the church.
1
A con man guised as an attorney for con man guised as a president.
137
The legal profession has long cornered the market in charlatins.....
"Everyone deserves representation" - but do they?.....To represent Trump is to either satisfy one's ego or seek the publicity - negative? - it will bring.......Trump is dirty and by extension, by association so will his lawyers be tainted......
32
Is Mr. Sekulow a lawyer or a huckster? No, the two are not the same, not if the attorney is truly professional. In Mr. Sekulow’s case it’s hard to see where the skilled lawyer ends and the self-interested salesman begins. That’s bad for all reputable attorneys.
57
The religious right is primarily interested in ramming their version of religion down the throat of all taxpayers. Never content to make displays of their faith solely on private or personal property, they proselytize by using taxpayer funded property at every opportunity. That's just the first step of their agenda. The founders understood the dangers of religion (e.g., he Hundred Years War) - but the religious right just doesn't get it and will never rest until every last person on earth is converted to their way of thinking. (Because, unlike, say, the Pythagorean Theorem, whose proof nobody has yet died for, religion isn't really about thinking).
76
@Rethinking
Primarily interested in enriching themselves by convincing gullible people to give them money.
40
@Pat
How disgraceful that Sekulow preyed on the poor and feeble-minded people to enrich himself.
What would Jesus do?
1
"claims of immunity from prosecution" Both my president and Mr. Sekulow fail our country's citizenship test. Here:
Question-What is the “rule of law”?
Answers-▪ Everyone must follow the law. ▪ Leaders must obey the law.
▪ Government must obey the law. ▪ No one is above the law.
The End. Done.
34
This resume seems perfectly suited to the trash-reality-tv show we are being subjected to on a daily basis. The Trump Family have re-defined the word 'best'.
Be Best.
Best People.
Please make this end!
43
Mr. Sekulow has an interesting background. I have to wonder about his various companies tax status. It certainly does appear that some might be declaring tax-exempt status, yet they do political work. It makes sense that he would be in charge of Trump's fight regarding his tax returns. Sounds like Mr. Sekulow is cut from the same cloth as Trump.
These Evangelicals that are mentioned in this column, including Mr. Sekulow, appear to use their Religion to enrich themselves.
What kind of Evangelicals solicit "sacrificial donations" from people who are struggling economically? These people, like the Crouches', Robertson and Sekulows' need to reread their bibles. What hypocrisy!
If this isn't an argument for doing away with tax-exempt status, I don't know what is.
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@Jean
If you are persistently brazen in your wrong-doing, then after a while the wrong becomes right. Just look what this philosophy has done for Trump.
1
Don't be fooled. He's merely another con man making his family wealthy preying on the despairing and gullible. Listen to his radio shows and it will be clear.
56
I have known three Jewish guys in my life who converted to Christianity.
While regretting as I always do the loss of any members of the Tribe, I wished them good luck and took solace in the thought that their conversion represented a way for them to reach G-d in a way that mattered to them.
Lawyer Sekulow, however, appears to have been a far different story.
What seems to have mattered most to him was a wonderfully lucrative political-business opportunity.
Or putting it another way, in his case I count Judaism’s loss as our gain.
56
So how does he reconcile his "faith'' with his incessant shading of the truth in defense of his client, the President?
44
@Frank
If he was a true Christian he would not work for Trump. He's just as much a conman as the man he serves.
Someday his children and grandchildren will question his fealty to such an evil creature and possibly feel the shame and the guilt of his complicity to terrorizing our nation.
As of now Sekulow allegiance is not to God, rather to greed and tyranny. If he is a God fearing man, I wonder what his prayers must be like. Perhaps, something like the following:
"Please God, help me promote and defend a man who claims every nefarious act he commits and every cruel word he utters evolves from conspiracy theories, non-existent hoaxes and fake news.
Let me prop up a man who dedicates his life to bullying others, who worships dictators, lies constantly, forcibly and psychologically mistreats women and people of color, relies on deception to avoid paying taxes, etc., etc., etc.
Most of all God forgive me for cavorting with the Devil while claiming to be a man of Faith. I am the ultimate hypocrite."
28
Of course a significant omission from the bankruptcy in 1986 of the real estate development firm is that the 1986 tax act obliterated every real estate venture that was predicated upon the tax credits under the then current tax law. As an historic property renovation and development company, the company would have instantly seen its values cut in half, and the ability to service any mortgage debt disappear literally overnight. Whether such drastic tax changes are in essence a taking under the Fifth Amendment should certainly be debated. The government creates tax incentives to achieve certain financial investment goals. Changing the rules overnight leaves many victims. Mr. Sekulow, 33 years ago at the young age of 30 and recently graduated from law school, was one of them.
12
@drcmd Good point. It doesn't hurt to mention valid details of an otherwise shady career.
7