Phil Robertson in rant against atheists

Duck Dynasty patriarch Phil Robertson is facing criticism after a speech that included a story about an atheist family being killed.

Phil Robertson, 68, appeared to be using the imagined story to claim that atheists would not find rape or murder immoral.

Atheist groups denounced the speech, saying it was unlikely Phil Robertson actually knows any atheists.

In 2013, Phil Robertson was suspended from the show and quickly reinstated following controversial remarks about homos**uality in an interview with GQ magazine.

Phil Robertson has since become a political figure. He recently spoke at CPAC, a large gathering of American conservatives that included presidential hopefuls such as Ted Cruz and Rand Paul.

Duck Dynasty – now in its seventh series – has broken several ratings records on both A&E and cable television as a whole, with Season 4 premiere drawing 11.8 million viewers.

The reality show follows the lives of the Robertson family, a clan with old-fashioned values who live together in West Monroe, Louisiana, running their multi-million dollar family business, Duck Commander – which makes products for duck hunters.