The Patriot Post® · Raphael Warnock: Money-Grubbing 'Man of God'

When Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock launched his U.S. Senate campaign in 2020, the media carefully built his image on the idea that he’s a man in touch with the working class and a servant of God interested in representing the downtrodden on Capitol Hill.

Then again, when Democrats like Barack Obama, Chuck Schumer, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker, and Stacey Abrams just about tripped over themselves to endorse Warnock, we knew something was up.

Case in point: Atlanta’s historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, which was once the spiritual home of Martin Luther King Jr. and which now employs Warnock as a pastor, pays him a generous annual salary of more than $120,000 and a housing allowance of $7,417 per month. That’s a lot of take-home pay for a humble pastor, and that’s above and beyond the $164,000 he earns as a U.S. senator and the quarter-million he received as an advance for his book.

There’s nothing wrong with earning a good living, but it seems that the love of money has corrupted the Reverend Raphael Warnock.

How so? The Washington Free Beacon reports that Ebenezer’s business partner, Columbia Residential, filed eviction lawsuits against tenants of Columbia Tower apartments during the coronavirus pandemic. Some residents in receipt of eviction notices owed as little as $125. Seems a bit harsh, no? And especially for a business so closely tied to such a champion of the working class and the downtrodden.

Making matters even more complicated, the CEO of Columbia Residential donated more than $14,000 to Warnock’s Senate campaign. If you think the relationship between a pastor-turned-senator, a famous church, the CEO of a company, and a building that receives public fundings seems problematic, even borderline unethical, you’re not alone.

Earlier this week, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported the following: “A charity arm of Ebenezer Baptist Church should face an IRS audit for allegedly concealing its ownership in an Atlanta apartment building which houses chronically homeless and mentally ill residents, according to a complaint” filed by a watchdog group called the National Legal and Policy Center.

Given that the NLPC “promotes ethics in public life through research, investigation, education, and legal action,” we’re not surprised that the organization is calling for an IRS investigation.

The NLPC complaint details the apparent relationships between Ebenezer, two nonprofits called Ebenezer Building Foundation and MLK Village Corporation, and the aforementioned for-profit called Columbia Residential, which owns the remaining 1% and manages the building. In addition, the complaint “also asks the IRS to find out where some $200,000 in rental income went based on discrepancies in the Foundation’s financial statements.”

Nor are we surprised that Warnock’s opponent in next month’s election, Republican Herschel Walker, is weighing in on the controversy, especially given that he and Warnock are in a statistical dead-heat. “I have never known a preacher that likes abortion even after birth, won’t pay his child support, and evicts poor people to the street,” tweeted Walker. “I will pay the $4,500 in past due rents listed in this news article to keep Reverend Warnock from evicting these people.”

It was a powerful if opportunistic punch from Walker, the former football star who has also been beset by credibility and character issues of late. That’s why his focus should remain on Warnock, his complete lack of compassion for people struggling to make ends meet, and the hypocrisy of a man who neglected the very people he promised to help.

Warnock’s ex-wife, Ouleye Ndoye, ought to know. She told the media back in 2020 that Warnock’s a “great actor” after accusing him of running a car over her foot during a disagreement. She added, “He is phenomenal at putting on a really good show.” Ndoye claimed in court documents earlier this year that Warnock didn’t follow through with promised childcare payments, leaving her financially strapped.

Political campaigns are often full of “gotcha” moments, and there have been plenty to go around on both sides in this one — especially when it comes to the candidates’ personal lives. But beyond this, Warnock’s hard-left policy positions seem far out of step with everyday Georgians. And the more we learn about Warnock both personally and financially, the more he seems like a corrupt, self-serving, and even heartless individual.

Whether enough Georgians will see what we’re seeing is anyone’s guess. But if they do, Heisman Trophy-winning Herschel Walker will flip a crucial seat in the Republicans’ fight to take back the U.S. Senate from Joe Biden’s Democrats.