Tony Perkins at CPAC: The Conservative Movement is Broad Enough to Include Atheists

American Atheists’ presence at CPAC may be having an impact.

Tony Perkins, the President of Family Research Council and one of the most powerful Christian Right leaders out there, said during a CPAC panel this morning that the conservative movement is broad enough to include atheists.

Which, admittedly, is a strange thing for him to say when the policies he supports are all about advancing Christianity…

… I know the conservative movement is broad. And there are those that may choose to be non-religious and that’s fine. And the conservative movement is broad enough for them. Whether you’re religious or non-religious, religious freedom is the freedom upon which all of our other freedoms hinge. And the future of our country is only as bright as our religious freedom is, and we have an obligation and a responsibility to protect that freedom. And it requires government protection, but it [also] requires personal effort and action.

To be clear, Tony Perkins thinks “religious freedom” means being able to discriminate against LGBT people if you’re a Christian business owner… so even if he’s right that the movement is broad enough to include atheists, he’s pushing the movement in a direction so that no one beyond his base would ever want to be a part of it.

(Thanks to Leah for the tip and Kyle for the video)