HOLLYWOOD - Former CBS anchor Walter Cronkite, who raised eyebrows in 1997 when he charged that evangelists Jerry Falwell, Ralph Reed and Pat Robertson were "wrapping their harsh right wing views in the banner of religious faith," has stepped up his criticism of the televangelists.Commenting on Falwell's remarks on Robertson's TV program that "the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists and the gays and lesbians ... the ACLU, People for the American Way ... helped make this [the WTC and Pentagon attacks] happen," Cronkite told TV Guide that he thought the remarks were "the most abominable thing I've ever heard." (During the broadcast, Robertson agreed with Falwell, but has since distanced himself from him on the matter; Falwell has apologized]
Cronkite appeared to liken the statement to remarks by Muslim extremists who have called for a jihad against the West for its degenerate ways. "It makes you wonder if they are worshipping the same God as the people who bombed the Trade Center and the Pentagon," Cronkite said.