Rev. Al Sharpton called out former President Donald Trump for selling $60 Bibles in the week leading up to Easter.
The activist appeared on “Morning Joe” Thursday to weigh in on the discussion of Trump’s decision to profit off of a religious text, promoting the Lee Greenwood Bible completely with a Trump-specific referral code.
“I wonder how many ministers, conservative evangelicals that will go to their pulpit tomorrow, on Sunday, Easter using the Trump Bible,” Sharpton said on the show, referring to Good Friday and Easter church services. “They ought to be defrocked if they would even try and act like this is nothing but what it is, and that’s a hustle.”
Sharpton also asserted that the holiday timing makes it all worse as Easter weekend approaches.
“People ought to realize how offensive this is to those of us that really believe in the Bible. He’s doing this during Holy Week. Tomorrow is Good Friday, Sunday is Easter,” he said. “Of all of the times you want to hustle using the Bible, why would you do it during Holy Week, which is really a spit in the face of people that really believe in the Bible, from a Christian point of view?”
The host and activist compared Trump’s sale of pieces of the suit he wore to take his mugshot, as well as other merchandise, to “huckster evangelists” who would sell false “blessed cloth” and other merch.
“This man has sold the pieces of his garments that he went to court with. Yes, he is selling sneakers now, gold sneakers with red bottoms. Now Bibles,” Sharpton added. “I mean, if he’s not like the old hustlers that used to use tents to go on all ladies that believe that this was the way to God, then I don’t know what it is. And for those in the evangelical community, not to come out and say, ‘Wait a minute,’ during Holy Week — that’s a step too far, makes us wonder where their commitment really is.”
