Louis P. Sheldon

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Louis P. Sheldon (born 1934 in Washington, D.C.) is an American Presbyterian pastor and chairman of the social conservative organization, the Traditional Values Coalition. He primarily speaks and writes about social issues such as abortion, religious liberty, and public acceptance of homosexuality and same-sex marriage.

Sheldon was born and raised in Washington, D.C., the son of a Jewish mother and a Protestant father. He earned a B.S. in History from Michigan State University in 1957 and a M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1960. Sheldon founded the Traditional Values Coalition in 1980 as a non-denominational, grassroots church lobby. The Southern Poverty Law Center lists TVC as a hate group.[1]

He has appeared as a guest commentator on the Fox News Channel, on programs such as Cavuto on Business, Hannity & Colmes, and The O'Reilly Factor. He has also appeared on CNBC, MSNBC, CNN, and PBS, and has also been featured in newspapers such as The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, as well as on numerous national radio talk shows.

His presence created the motivation for the Hamilton Baptist Church protests in San Francisco.

Sheldon was married on August 24, 1957 and has four children.

Link to Jack Abramoff scandals

Sheldon was an associate of Jack Abramoff, the Republican lobbyist jailed for influence peddling. Sheldon worked with Abramoff to lobby members of the US Congress to kill the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act. Abramoff directed his client, eLottery, to direct $25,000 in payments to Sheldon's Traditional Values Coalition.

The TVC has also been linked to the Jack Abramoff CNMI scandal. The organization was used by Abramoff to pay for the trip of at least one member of Congress to visit the island, then-Congressman Bob Schaffer. The Denver Post reported that the TVC paid the $13,000 travel bill for the trip, organized by Abramoff's lobbying firm.[2]

Abramoff's lobbying team would prepare questions and "factual backup" for friendly lawmakers. Trips to the island for congressmen and staff would be a key tool to "build permanent friends," the memo said.

The congressional junkets to the Mariana Islands were designed to build support in Congress among Republican lawmakers to block labor and immigration reforms at the islands, which had been found to harbor worker abuse and forced abortions among immigrant workers. The trips involved hotel stays and parasailing trips.

Bibliography

Sheldon has authored one book:

  • The Agenda: The Homosexual Plan to Change America. Frontline. 2005. ISBN 1-59185-796-1. 

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/intelligence-files/ideology/anti-gay/active_hate_groups
  2. ↑ Riley, Michael (April 13, 2008). "Schaffer, lobbyist strategies meshed". Denver Post. 
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