Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock (D) ripped former President Donald Trump on Sunday for his latest commercial exploit—hawking $60 “Trump-endorsed” Bibles, which he promoted over Easter weekend.
“The Bible does not need Trump’s endorsement,” Warnock said, appearing on CNN’s State of the Union on Easter Sunday.
The senator—who is a longtime Baptist pastor—used an example from the Bible to condemn Trump’s behavior.
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“Jesus, in the last week of his life, chased the money-changers out of the temple—those who would take sacred things and use them as cheap relics to be sold on the marketplace,” he said.
Money from the sale of “God Bless the USA” Bibles does not go directly to Trump’s re-election campaign. But its seller pays to use the former president’s image and likeness, according to its website, meaning Trump likely gets some share of its profits.
Warnock was unsurprised by the merchandising move.
“The sad thing is that none of us are surprised by this. This is what we expect from the former president,” Warnock said.
“If he’s not selling us steaks, he’s selling a school whose degree is not worth the paper it’s written on. If he’s not selling us a school, he’s selling us sneakers. And now, he’s trying to sell the Scriptures,” the senator added, referring to the now-defunct mail-order meat company Trump Steaks, the now-defunct Trump University and the gaudy $400 self-branded sneakers he debuted in February.
The merchandising ploys come as Trump’s financial woes deepen. The former president was ordered to pay a $91.6 million bond to E. Jean Carroll and a $464 million bond in his New York civil fraud case, the latter of which was reduced by an appellate court to $175 million.
Trump’s re-election effort is also dwarfed by Joe Biden’s when it comes to funding—the Republican’s own campaign adviser admitted he can’t match the Democrats’ effort.
