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In a somewhat surprising move, a coalition of black churches is calling for MSNBC to dump Al Sharpton and initiate an investigation into the $500,000 Sharpton’s National Action Network received from the Kamala Harris campaign.

The payout came before Sharpton sat down with the failed Democratic nominee for a fawning interview on his MSNBC show.

The National Black Church Initiative (NBCI), a coalition of 150,000 African American churches, said in a post on Facebook it “is very concerned that one of our leaders appears to be selling our voting to Kamala Harris.”

In asking what Vice President Harris got in return for her money, the NBCI reminded Sharpton that he “is a minister of the Gospel,” and said, “This type of action puts a moral stain on the integrity of the black church.” The group also called on Sharpton to “fully disclose the nature of the $500,000, why it was given and received, and for what purpose.” He was also asked to reveal whether he received any funds personally.

“The National Black Church Initiative demands that MSNBC launch an investigation into the donation or payment by the Harris campaign. We will support Rev. Sharpton’s suspension until the investigation is complete,” the statement added. “In all the talk about the threat to our democracy, someone forgot to articulate that free, open, objective, and transparent press is an essential component of the building blocks to preserve our democracy’s integrity.”

Rev. Anthony Evans, president of the National Black Church Initiative, questioned Sharpton’s “moral and journalism ethics.”

“Rev. Sharpton is loved and admired by many in our coalition, but that does take away from the fact he is facing significant moral and journalism ethics regarding this payment or donation to the National Action Network. We will continue to pray for him,” Evans said.

Kamala Harris doled out millions of dollars in the closing days of the election, essentially buying one celebrity endorsement after another and despite raising well over $1 billion, her campaign ended up $20 million in debt.

Given the views of Al Sharpton on social media, it’s a wonder why MSNBC saw fit to give him a show in the first place. It also prompts the question of why the network has refused to take action over the pay-to-play controversy.

Here’s a quick sampling of responses to the story, as seen on X:

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