Faith And Freedom Conference 2011: Behind The Scenes With HuffPost (VIDEO)

The Huffington Post was on the scene at the Faith and Freedom Conference in Washington, D.C. on Friday and spoke with politicians and some of the hundreds of people in attendance at the two-day event. Storms of reporters were also on hand at the conservative gathering.

Below, a video capturing some highlights.

WATCH:

Comments

[wakeupyouall]

08:49 AM on 06/06/2011

We should call them fundamentalist not Christians. Same with the taliban types. Theae guys are giving their religion a bad name. They are also not even good examples of people of faith. Most of these people are into a carny types of religous side show. Snake oil sales men and all.

[nherent]

07:30 PM on 06/05/2011

If the word "freedom" means religious freedom, as in the right to practice whatever religion you choose, then fine. The First Amendment guarantees relgious freedom, but does not endorse one religion over another.
Are these folks running for office going to attend Jewish events? Catholic? Muslim? Unitarian Universalist? How about honoring non-faith people?

[gmb007]

12:41 PM on 06/05/2011

"influence public policy and ENACT LEGISLATION"

GOP (+) Evangelical Christians = THEOCRACY

from FFC website
About the Faith and Freedom Coalition

[gmb007]

11:54 AM on 06/05/2011

Google or Wikipedia Christian "Dominionism".

Then you'll really understand what "Faith and Freedom Conference" is all about -

...flat out, full-bore Theocracy, an America ruled by Biblical Law.

[gmb007]

11:11 AM on 06/05/2011

Faith and Freedom Coalition Conference and Strategy Briefing
http://ffcoalition.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/updated-speaker-slide-sm.jpg

"Coalition"? "Strategy"? "Briefing"?

"No one who seeks the Republican nomination for the presidency can hope to emerge victorious without the support of [Evangelical Christian]* social conservatives..."

A religious-political campaign.

Is this not the very epitome of THEOCRACY?

Core Values Will Guide GOP Candidate
http://ffcoalition.com/2011/05/25/core-values-will-guide-gop-candidate/

* FFC very conveniently left this core part out, so as not to appear as a Theocratic Movement.

[Kate Zeiss]

09:11 AM on 06/05/2011

"Faith and Freedom" is just the latest of Ralph Reed's strike it rich with Jesus schemes . . . Reed is a protege of Jack Abramoff. Abramoff, Reed and Grover Norquist are the unholy trinity who concocted the Christian Coalition, otherwise known as the Great American Theocracy movement.

Doesn't seem to be commanding the same kinds of crowds these days, though . . .

[jessivehadit]

07:59 AM on 06/05/2011

Faith and Freedom? that's kind of an oxymoron.

[OneEarthling]

09:50 AM on 06/05/2011

I'll say. You're only free until you accept faith's shackles.

[Sirlarek]

02:00 PM on 06/05/2011

Not kind of....exactly an oxymoron. But that's what it takes to be GOP now. You have to believe in mythology. It is a requirement of the faulty thinking processes that live hypocritically at the root of modern conservative thinking.

[Schoolgirl666]

07:25 AM on 06/05/2011

What was that? Waste of air time.....a couple of minutes I'll never get back...If you find yourself with a microphone in your hand.....try karaoke.

[barbra1971]

12:31 AM on 06/05/2011

It takes for ever to load the video, what is going on? I never had this problem before, did you change something?

[bluecollaramerican]

05:41 AM on 06/05/2011

One of those fellers with the rosy cheeks ate the video.

[barbra1971]

03:28 PM on 06/05/2011

Did you mean fellas, George?

[Joe in Vegas]

11:47 PM on 06/04/2011

I wasn't there, but isn't "Faith" when linked with "Freedom" a strong oxymoron?

[Stephen Stafford]

02:23 AM on 06/05/2011

I wish you had said more about what makes you feel that way. For me, the answer is no. One can be free and believe in what the mind does not see. One thing does not cancel out the other, the two can work together well. I don't see the concept.

However, it is doubtful to me that this group's understanding of that expression would match mine, and I am certainly not in sync with their views. It's a catchy phrase, though. I don't think they can appropriate its actual meaning to their limited, mean spirited causes.

[Skeptical Cicada]

08:47 AM on 06/05/2011

Joe's point is that this group wants to take its faith and involuntarily force it on everyone else by enacting it as law.

[Stephen Stafford]

02:27 AM on 06/05/2011

Additionally, I am of a people group that had faith that freedom would be obtained when there was no hope or possibility for such to exist, and indeed that time of freedom has come,as they testified it would in concert with their faith. There is a connection, and many citizens today are the living proof that faith and freedom are not oxymoronic at all.

[separatingwheatfromchaff]

11:22 PM on 06/04/2011

So they named it faith and freedom conference,sounds a lot like Allah Akbar.Why is it always the most unholy that attach themselves to the Bible for public display?

[Stephen Stafford]

02:30 AM on 06/05/2011

That faith issues a direct call for persons full of sin to come as they are. While it offers a transformative process, there is no relief from the foibles of humanity if one chooses to indulge in such.

[venicefpg]

10:33 PM on 06/04/2011

it's sad that so many people claim to be christians . as the bible clearly and divinely and explicitly says, only the born again evangelicals are christians, not catholics, not mormons, not episcapalians, etc etc . Ralph Reed is (as was Jerry Falwell) a true christian .. and Bush and Chenay also .. that's why the true god of the bible blessed our country so much during the Bush/Cheney 8 years . the Lord led them to even lower our taxes which created so many jobs, i think all the chiefs of staff are born again, which is why we're so successful in improving the lives in afgan and iraq . like David in the old testament, he helped spread the truth via a storng military

[kozy]

11:38 PM on 06/04/2011

Sadly,some people will believe this is a serious post praising the Republican right.

[Phoebe917]

11:39 PM on 06/04/2011

holy cow!

[MiddleMolly]

12:13 AM on 06/05/2011

I think this poster is engaging in sarcasm. Nothing else would make sense.

[jambi77]

10:26 PM on 06/04/2011

hey huffpo..why dont ya do something good for others..and have some of of your readers go to these .."conferences"..and do reporting...

maybe a trip for them, expenses paid,...to see what the hell is ailing the USA...

[fabbro]

01:03 AM on 06/05/2011

I know what is ailing the USA... people using their religion as their education. There are "Christians" who believe that dinosaurs and humans lived on earth at the same time...what a joke.... There is no cure for ignorance.

[Watermelonman]

09:29 AM on 06/05/2011

Well said. Did you hear that Bachmann finally got the word from God that she should joing the race to become POTUS? I wonder who she would blame when reality sets in that that aren't enough uber crazies out there to vote for her to get her anywhere close to even her party's nod.

[pceasy]

10:11 PM on 06/04/2011

Chamique Parker
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8 minutes ago (10:01 PM)
Hatred = Liberals

-------------------------------

Nah. We don't hide behind "our faith" to spread hate. Conservatives do that so well. Cowards.

[Chamique Parker]

09:30 PM on 06/04/2011

Why do liberals hate Christians?

[ehorth]

09:32 PM on 06/04/2011

Why do conservatives always think that?

[Chamique Parker]

09:42 PM on 06/04/2011

Read the comments on this article.

[pceasy]

09:46 PM on 06/04/2011

Why do conservatives pretend to be Christians? Greed, gluttony, adultery - topics the right love to ignore.

[Chamique Parker]

10:01 PM on 06/04/2011

Hatred = Liberals

[go2goal]

10:02 PM on 06/04/2011

The Fellowship's C Street group in DC is as much a threat to US Democracy as Muslim fundamentalist. Jeff Sharlet deserves a Pulitzer Prize for exposing them and how they operate and manipulate the government to advance their twisted agenda.

Everyone should read Jeff's book:
The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power