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Chuck Colson, Anti-Gay Manhattan Declaration Author, Watergate Felon, Dies

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Chuck Colson, the virulently anti-gay theocrat, Evangelical Christian Prison Fellowship founder, Watergate felon, and Manhattan Declaration co-author, died today at the age of 80, after a brain hemorrhage earlier this month. President Richard M. Nixon’s self-described “hatchet man,” Colson — who turned to religion just before he began serving a prison sentence as one of the Watergate Seven — had the reputation of a “dirty tricks” man, but later became highly-regarded within the ranks of the radical religious right. Colson in recent years was a chief religious flag waver falsely claiming the rights of Christians are being compromised.

Charles Wendell “Chuck” Colson, born October 16, 1931, who wrote dozens of books, was also a co-author of the 2009 “Manhattan Declaration: A Call of Christian Conscience,” an anarchistic manifesto demanding signatories — more than 525,000 to date — break the law should they perceive the law not squaring with the Bible. The Declaration attacks same-sex marriage, abortion, laments both society’s decoupling of marriage from childbearing and its growing acceptance of infidelity.

Colson co-authored the Manhattan Declaration with National Organization For Marriage (NOM) founder Robert P. George, whom Colson routinely praised.

The Los Angeles Times described Colson’s Manhattan Declaration as incautious, “apocalyptic,” “disingenuous,” “irresponsible and dangerous,” and chastised its “Christian religious leaders who, even as they insist on their right to shape the nation’s laws, are reserving the right to violate them.” The Times also labeled the Declaration’s attack on same-sex marriage as a “canard,” “as is the declaration’s complaint that Christian leaders are being prevented from expressing their ‘religious and moral commitments to the sanctity of life and to the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife’.”

Colson repeatedly attacked same-sex marriage and homosexuality. He wrongly stated “homosexual behavior” is more “dangerous than smoking, it lowers the life expectancy dramatically.” Colson also falsely stated that legalizing same-sex marriage was “sanctioning behavior known to be dangerous.” And, again falsely, stated that gays and lesbians “don’t want marriage; they want their sexual choices affirmed as normal and moral.”

And as late as last year, despite years of research to the contrary, Colson was publicly advocating that homosexuality was both a choice and avoidable if parents “properly” raised their children. Colson pointed to the book “A Parent’s Guide to Preventing Homosexuality,” as the way to “learn more about what parents can do to lessen the chances their children will grow up homosexual.”

GLAAD, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation included Colson in its recent premiere launch of the GLAAD Commentator Accountability Project (CAP), which tracks the statements of several dozen anti-gay pundits. The GLAAD CAP notes:

When the APA passed a resolution declaring so-called “ex-gay” treatment unethical, [Colson] said: “If any of this reminds you of the tactics of Nazi Germany, it ought to. In Hitler’s Germany the term for what the [American Psychological Association] is doing was Gleichgeschaltung, which means ‘forced conformity.’ If you didn’t conform to the government’s point of view, you risked losing your job. That is what’s happening in the world of psychology today.”

Lamenting his inclusion in GLAAD’s CAP, Colson himself ludicrously wrote, “Over the years I have been very careful not to engage in gay-bashing. I can’t think of a single time I have.”

In “Chuck Colson, Watergate scandal figure, dies at 80,” The Washington Post’s first sentence reads:

Charles W. Colson, the Republican political operative who boasted he would “walk over my own grandmother” to ensure the reelection of President Richard M. Nixon and went on to found a worldwide prison fellowship ministry after his conversion to evangelical Christianity, died April 21 Inova Fairfax Hospital.

and notes:

Mr. Colson’s reputation as a “dirty tricks artist” overshadowed his achievements as a darkly brilliant political strategist. He had helped lay the groundwork for the Nixon landslide of November 1972 by appealing to disgruntled Democrats and blue-collar minority voters.

Focus On The Family head Jim Daly lamented Colson’s passing today:

America has lost a gentleman and statesman of the highest integrity and character. I’ve lost a dear friend and mentor who, most importantly, modeled for me how to stand for God’s Truth with Christ’s heart. Chuck was an endlessly selfless man, whose love for and ministry to those in prison made him one of the great modern-day lions of the faith.

Author Jeff Sharlet, who has researched and written extensively on the radical religious right, upon learning of Colson’s passing, today wrote via Twitter:

Chuck Colson was a cruel, vain, and arrogant man in all phases of his life, a dissembler & a hater to the end. RIP.

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Blanche Suggests Trump Played Role in FBI Investigation of Georgia Elections Office

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January 30, 2026

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Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche suggested on Friday that President Donald Trump had a role in the FBI’s investigation that led to the execution of a search warrant on a Georgia elections office, where ballots from the 2020 election reportedly were seized.

For years, President Trump has claimed that the 2020 presidential election he lost had been stolen, despite dozens of court cases that failed to prove so.

At a press conference at the U.S. Department of Justice headquarters, Blanche suggested the president played a role in the investigation that led to the FBI raid, according to Politico.

“Blanche suggested that the probe was related to ‘election integrity’ and that President Donald Trump had a role in it,” Politico reported. Blanche also appeared to confirm the raid was in connection with a criminal investigation.

READ MORE: CNN’s Tapper Flags ‘Killed’ Trump-Related Link in Epstein Dump — Access Restored Fast

“It should be no surprise to many in this room, or anybody watching, that election integrity is extraordinarily important to this administration, always has been and always will be,” Blanche told reporters.

“And so the fact that President Trump and this administration are investigating to make sure that … we are investigating issues around elections to make sure that we do have completely fair and appropriate elections should not be surprising, but I can’t comment on any criminal investigations.”

The New York Times’ Glenn Thrush, during the press conference, posted to social media, “When asked about FBI’s seizure of voter records in Atlanta — Todd Blanche just said that Trump himself ‘is investigating’ voter fraud.”

In modern presidential administrations it would be unusual for a president to play a role in a specific Department of Justice criminal investigation, so as to avoid the appearance of political interference.

READ MORE: ‘We Did Not Protect President Trump’ DOJ Says Upon Releasing Millions More Epstein Files

 

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CNN’s Tapper Flags ‘Killed’ Trump-Related Link in Epstein Dump — Access Restored Fast

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January 30, 2026

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Access to a document originally released as part of Friday’s Epstein files document dump that included language related to accusations against President Donald Trump and others allegedly had been removed, according to Jake Tapper. In just under an hour access was restored after the CNN anchor’s social media post.

The page Tapper linked to had read: “We are sorry, the page you’re looking for can’t be found on the Department of Justice website.”

“DOJ has since killed this link,” Tapper wrote. “This is what was there.”

Access was restored about 48 minutes later, according to Tapper’s posts.

According to the screenshot the CNN journalist posted on social media, the document included complaint summaries alleging minors engaging in sexual acts with Trump and others. The complaints are allegations and not proof or evidence of wrongdoing. Donald Trump has denied any wrongdoing.

Part of one accusation alleged, “Caller named other individuals involved in ‘big orgy parties’ with her, other young girls, and older Victoria’s Secret models, including Bill Clinton and Donald Trump.”

“Online complainant reported she was a victim and witness to a sex trafficking ring at the Trump Golf Course in Rancho Palos Verdes. CA between 1995- 1996,” that same allegation continued. “Complainant reported Ghislaine Maxwell as the madam and broker for sex parties, clients of whom included Epstein, Robin Leach, and Donald Trump.”

The screenshot stated that the “Response” to those complaints was that “Complainant was spoken to and deemed not credible.”

Other complaints in the screenshotted document read: “One of complainant’s ex-girlfriend’s daughters told complainant Trump raped her, as did Epstein.”

The screenshot of the document included multiple allegations that are graphic and include references to rape and murder.

Image via Reuters 

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‘We Did Not Protect President Trump’ DOJ Says Upon Releasing Millions More Epstein Files

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19 hours ago

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January 30, 2026

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More than forty days after federal law required the release of the Epstein files, the U.S. Department of Justice announced it will post about three million additional documents from its trove on Friday.

In addition to the documents, 2,000 videos and about 180,000 images will also be released, according to Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who “said the files included images taken by Epstein and others that were on his devices but he didn’t take,” NBC News reported.

“Blanche said that the public should not find within the files the names of any men who abused women in connection with Epstein,” NBC added. “His comments affirm an unsigned statement from the DOJ and the FBI last year that sparked an avalanche of criticism and calls for more transparency.”

When asked by reporters if he had updated the White House on the release of the files, Blanche said, “My team has certain communications with the White House — let me just be clear, they had nothing to do with this review. They had no oversight with this review, they did not tell this department how to do our review, what to look for, what to redact, what not to redact. They absolutely knew that I was doing this press conference today and I was releasing the materials today.”

Blanche insisted there was no “oversight by the White House” in the process.

Asked if the DOJ is releasing all documents related to President Donald Trump from the files, Blanche told reporters, “I can assure that we complied with the statute.”

“We complied with the act,” he said, “We did not protect President Trump.”

“We didn’t protect or not protect anybody,” he added, while declaring that “that there’s a hunger, a thirst for information that I do not think will be satisfied by the review of these documents.”

Blanche insisted that President Trump has had the “same consistent message about Jeffrey Epstein.” He also insisted that “there’s not been a change, of course, or anything, and certainly his direction to … the Department of Justice was to release the files, be as transparent as we can.”

 

Image via Reuters

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