Trump has caught the fancy of the conservative right who feel disfranchised by today's so called politicians. He is the voice of the "folk", of the GOP masses, who are the cannon-fodder, the cattle outside the slaughterhouse, serenely chewing the cud ... those to whom things are done, in contrast to those who have executive will and intelligence. His rhetoric is seemingly innocent of politics to which there is a collective responsive sigh of alas! But where the politics crops up is that if we take this eventually to be the typical sentiment of american society at large—and there is no more serious voice that stands higher than Trump's, then we are by the same token saying something very definite about that society.
17
It bears noting that the ability of a woman to determine both the number and timing of having children is well proven to reduce maternal and infant deaths and serious illnesses. Being in favor of contraception is being in favor of a good, not a bad.
Some religion(s) oppose contraception. They have an absolute right to do so within the ranks of their own religion. The problem in America is that too many religious people want to use government to impose a religious teaching from one religion (i.e. contraception or banning gay marriage, for example) onto other people whose religious teachings specifically endorse contraception and/or gay marriage.
This gets worse when everyone who won't go along with such bannings is described as immoral, sinful, the enemy, etc. As a non-religious believer I could get along well with folks who want to stop human trafficking, help very poor children achieve better lives, lower the rates of incarceration, etc. so long as I don't have to buy the entire religious package that animates these good acts for them. I, for my part, will respect their religious beliefs and practices with no condescension or disrespect.
Some religion(s) oppose contraception. They have an absolute right to do so within the ranks of their own religion. The problem in America is that too many religious people want to use government to impose a religious teaching from one religion (i.e. contraception or banning gay marriage, for example) onto other people whose religious teachings specifically endorse contraception and/or gay marriage.
This gets worse when everyone who won't go along with such bannings is described as immoral, sinful, the enemy, etc. As a non-religious believer I could get along well with folks who want to stop human trafficking, help very poor children achieve better lives, lower the rates of incarceration, etc. so long as I don't have to buy the entire religious package that animates these good acts for them. I, for my part, will respect their religious beliefs and practices with no condescension or disrespect.
41
I'm not that interested in scholars' eyebrows, but for the good professor to include that limp preamble to someone she feels quote-worthy, someone who analogizes the Obama contraception "mandate" to the Nazis, well that's strange in the extreme. Also odd are that evangelical leaders are "vexed" at vile Trump pronouncements. Mild language, yes even limp. In fact, I find the entire tone of this piece oddly complacent. And worrying.
11
Rabid Obama supporters (which includes the entire news media establishment) have buzzwords like "evangelicals" that denotes Christian Conservatives, as if anyone who believes in God and disagrees with anything Obama has ever said or done are some less credible faction of Christians.
Guess who has the same views opposing gay marriage as the so-called evangelicals? Pope Francis.
Is Pope Francis an evangelical?
Guess who has the same views opposing gay marriage as the so-called evangelicals? Pope Francis.
Is Pope Francis an evangelical?
7
You can see here why Evangelicals are pushing an agenda of religious involvement in politics...in spite of basing their actions on faith and belief in a higher being, instead of reality and the facts that go with it. The problem? Rigidity, as their dogma is inflexible, with no room for compromise. Their claim of 'purity', akin to believing in angels, is no way to lead a pluralistic society, especially while rendering invisible the poor, the disenfranchised, and the one's claiming for a seat at the table. Crumbs won't do anymore.
13
I've read this article a few times and I can't quite get to what the point of it is -she quotes 100% Republican party political hacks like Rob Schwarzwalder of the Family Research Council in the same breath as 'radicals' like Gabe Lyons and Nazi-era theologians. How the whole things relates to Donald Trump is even less clear -are we to understand that evangelicals are embracing Trump because they have no idea what he's about and don't seem to care? Is Trump attractive because the typical evangelical cares more about punishing immigrants, securing their own financial well-being at the expense of social and racial minorities, and smiting gays than they are about turning the other cheek, meekness, poverty and social justice?
This seems to be full of sound and fury and signifying nothing...
This seems to be full of sound and fury and signifying nothing...
20
Donald Trump is neither moral nor immoral.
Donald Trump is a Capitalist.
Donald Trump's God is money.
Donald Trump worships at his bank.
Donald Trump is completely AMORAL.
This is nice for him since he can temporarily bond with anyone, the moral as well as the immoral, when it suits his purpose.
Donald Trump is a Capitalist.
Donald Trump's God is money.
Donald Trump worships at his bank.
Donald Trump is completely AMORAL.
This is nice for him since he can temporarily bond with anyone, the moral as well as the immoral, when it suits his purpose.
19
It is frustrating when two different Op Ed pieces at the NYT make different *empirical* claims that should be readily verifiable--here, that Trump is particularly popular among evangelical Christians; Ross Douthat's recent piece "Evangelicals and the Carson Illusion" (http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/20/opinion/sunday/ross-douthat-evangelica... that Trump *isn't* particularly popular among evangelical Christians. Which is it? The fact that the NYT allows two different Op Ed writers to make different claims about what shouldn't be a matter of opinion at all but a straightforwardly factual matter is discouraging. It's like the editorial board has given into the broader cultural cynicism that there *are* no non-political, objective facts about the world--it's just all slants and angles.
13
Most of the group are simply plain uneducated folks following the smarter more educated religious leaders who make money and fools out of them. Trump is a con man and these so-called religious folks who scream about abortion, gay marriage and of course our old favorite adultry and divorce seem to forget he is the king of those ideas and has long promoted them. But if their so-called leaders tell them to line up and support they will do it. Huzzah to the thinking evangelicals who move away from this man.
37
Well, our last President who was a born again Christian, invaded and destroyed two countries, enabled the deaths of thousand of people, and probably permanently messed up the Middle East, with people losing their homes and jobs. So whatever this group of evangelicals is selling, hopefully most of us are not buying. Who wants those standards? Trump needed to find a base, and obviously thought if he waved his Bible around, this group would flock to him. And it worked. Let's beat up on Hispanics, how about the Muslims? As a non Catholic, I have appreciated the message of the Pope this week about what Christianity is really all about. Not stadium churches and trying to find another group to hate. Or Trump hanging around with Roy Cohn and dumping wives.
77
Would that the silent majority really was.
Silent, that is.
But the reality is that they will soon no longer be the majority. For without their screaming and tantrums we would all be able to see that they are not only no longer in the majority but that they are shrinking fast. Just like the wicked witch after Dorothy tossed the bucket of water.
And while some may find it disturbing to most of us it will be a joyful moment when we hear the likes of Ted Cruz and Donald Trump lamenting, " I'm shrinking!"
Silent, that is.
But the reality is that they will soon no longer be the majority. For without their screaming and tantrums we would all be able to see that they are not only no longer in the majority but that they are shrinking fast. Just like the wicked witch after Dorothy tossed the bucket of water.
And while some may find it disturbing to most of us it will be a joyful moment when we hear the likes of Ted Cruz and Donald Trump lamenting, " I'm shrinking!"
19
Trump is certainly a very odd fellow for a sizable portion of Evangelicals to rally around. Is there anybody whose traits, characteristics, and actions are less in following in the path of Christ than this real estate mogul. I've never seen anyone, and I mean anyone, who is more materialistic than Trump. His total obsession with a persons' financial net worth appears to be what defines him. The only way a person like him can find his way into the hearts of so many evangelicals is to actually expose the fact that many of these evangelicals were never real Christians to begin with.
51
Evangelical Christians have defaced their own values and reputation by seeking power and influence through their exclusive association with the GOP and its big money backers. Having been bought off and then morally neutered by their political ambitions, no wonder that their numbers are shrinking.
40
Christians have NEVER embraced the teachings of Jesus.
And when Constantine converted the Church to suit his political agenda in 325 A.D., the last fragments of Jesus fell away from Christianity.
Forever...with occasional slivers of lights from people like the Quakers...and the secular humanists.
And when Constantine converted the Church to suit his political agenda in 325 A.D., the last fragments of Jesus fell away from Christianity.
Forever...with occasional slivers of lights from people like the Quakers...and the secular humanists.
16
I hope all of these Evangelicals just disappear from the American scene - unless they form a third stream and become decent, honest, caring, and unafraid of the intellectual, just like former President Jimmy Carter.
35
"By their acts you will know them". The vast majority of these so called evangelicals favor preventing 48 million people from getting healthcare. They support lowering taxes on greed and avarice, and they vote for a party that endorses war as the answer to world problems. They rail against the government when it tries to help the poor but they demand their check arrive on time. Maybe the problem with the concept of a "Christian Nation" is that many younger people see the hypocrisy for what it is and unfortunately blame religion rather than the individual.
If these Christian conservatives want to gain some credibility perhaps they can start by stopping the rightwing wackos in congress from defunding Planned Parenthood and developing a public-private partnership to help pregnant women carry a successful pregnancy to term and then welcome the child into a country that values them and shows it's support for education, nutrition and healthcare so the child has the greatest opportunity to live a successful life.
"By their acts you will know them". Indeed!!
If these Christian conservatives want to gain some credibility perhaps they can start by stopping the rightwing wackos in congress from defunding Planned Parenthood and developing a public-private partnership to help pregnant women carry a successful pregnancy to term and then welcome the child into a country that values them and shows it's support for education, nutrition and healthcare so the child has the greatest opportunity to live a successful life.
"By their acts you will know them". Indeed!!
70
Evangelicals need to take a tip from the most popular person in America right now -- Pope Francis -- and say "who am I to judge" repeatedly and publicly.
29
Commenter James Le writes, "Religious institutions cannot indulge in political activity without corrupting their core spiritual mission."
Christianity's core "spiritual" mission is, and has been since the 2nd or 3rd century of the Christian Era, to take political power wherever it can -- and to exercise that political power in totalitarian fashion. Christianity (much of it) like Islam (much of it) believes -- not only that it has sole possession of the Truth -- but that it must spread the Truth to everyone everywhere, imposing the Truth when it has the power to do so.
Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, and most other religions are content to be the faith of their own people. Christianity and Islam seek to be the faith of all people. An "evangelist" is one who spreads the good news. Spreading has been central to Christianity since Acts, if not earlier. Islam, ditto. Historically these two religions have been willing -- eager -- to control the State.
The more modest role of "moral minority" is merely a tactical retreat.
Christianity's core "spiritual" mission is, and has been since the 2nd or 3rd century of the Christian Era, to take political power wherever it can -- and to exercise that political power in totalitarian fashion. Christianity (much of it) like Islam (much of it) believes -- not only that it has sole possession of the Truth -- but that it must spread the Truth to everyone everywhere, imposing the Truth when it has the power to do so.
Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, and most other religions are content to be the faith of their own people. Christianity and Islam seek to be the faith of all people. An "evangelist" is one who spreads the good news. Spreading has been central to Christianity since Acts, if not earlier. Islam, ditto. Historically these two religions have been willing -- eager -- to control the State.
The more modest role of "moral minority" is merely a tactical retreat.
28
It's not just a block of Evangelicals who are against illegal immigration. When-ever this newspaper writes an article that is strictly on the subject of the illegal immigrants, its liberal readers fill the comment section with reasons for not allowing these people to remain here. 75% to 85% of the comments are typically against the NYT position of allowing the illegal aliens to remain here.
The NYT editorial board and its guest columnists would like to pretend that only Evangelicals are against illegal immigration. They are deluding themselves.
The NYT editorial board and its guest columnists would like to pretend that only Evangelicals are against illegal immigration. They are deluding themselves.
11
Like Bob Dylan's song says, "You got to serve Somebody".
There are plenty of Evangelicals who want to be "saved" but they also want Political Power. Trump is about Power. That is not what Christ was about.
There are plenty of Evangelicals who want to be "saved" but they also want Political Power. Trump is about Power. That is not what Christ was about.
14
This op-ed really treats with two issues. The first is the political ambitions of the intellectual leadership of evangelicals and the second is why so many evangelicals support Donald Trump. They’re not closely connected.
As to the first, I’m surprised that this argument hasn’t gained currency before. If one imagines a broad river of American social awareness and religious conviction, then streams and smaller rivers feeding it as it wends its way to the sea, we pretty much have this intellectual evangelical vision. It recognizes that a focused argument can influence and contribute to a society while a bald attempt to transform it will fail by not having sufficient numbers or resources. With time, a dark river can be affected by a clear stream, even if it remains largely dark.
Then, Ms. Worthen alludes in her last paragraph to why so many evangelicals support Donald Trump: anger and xenophobia; but the full truth is more pointed. Our electorate consists of intellectual leadership with various emphases and a vast number of indifferently informed people of average intelligence who are manipulable by emotional arguments that excuse failure by offering up totems of hatred. Mr. Trump excels at identifying things that we should hate as excuses for the consequences of what we do and don’t do, and does it with sufficient bombast to attract those who need to hate and who like angry clowns. Demagoguery is alive and well, and it attracts the religious as well as the secular.
As to the first, I’m surprised that this argument hasn’t gained currency before. If one imagines a broad river of American social awareness and religious conviction, then streams and smaller rivers feeding it as it wends its way to the sea, we pretty much have this intellectual evangelical vision. It recognizes that a focused argument can influence and contribute to a society while a bald attempt to transform it will fail by not having sufficient numbers or resources. With time, a dark river can be affected by a clear stream, even if it remains largely dark.
Then, Ms. Worthen alludes in her last paragraph to why so many evangelicals support Donald Trump: anger and xenophobia; but the full truth is more pointed. Our electorate consists of intellectual leadership with various emphases and a vast number of indifferently informed people of average intelligence who are manipulable by emotional arguments that excuse failure by offering up totems of hatred. Mr. Trump excels at identifying things that we should hate as excuses for the consequences of what we do and don’t do, and does it with sufficient bombast to attract those who need to hate and who like angry clowns. Demagoguery is alive and well, and it attracts the religious as well as the secular.
10
As an ex-Christian, I'll be more impressed with Christian morality when Christians actually live it. Jesus preached that material wealth is not a neutral thing, but a bad thing - a rich man, he said, cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Give your worldly goods to the poor, he preached, and follow me.
One of Jesus's strongest condemnations was to call someone a hypocrite - for instance, the wealthy man who makes a public show of giving alms, while holding on to his riches.
When evangelicals, or Christians of any stripe, follow Jesus instead of Mammon, I'll be willing to take their morality more seriously.
politicsbyeccehomo.wordpress.com
One of Jesus's strongest condemnations was to call someone a hypocrite - for instance, the wealthy man who makes a public show of giving alms, while holding on to his riches.
When evangelicals, or Christians of any stripe, follow Jesus instead of Mammon, I'll be willing to take their morality more seriously.
politicsbyeccehomo.wordpress.com
29
Enter the man who promises power, and suddenly winsomeness is cast away. Blanche DuBois becomes the Marquis de Sade.
In America, we cut people a lot of slack if they claim to be fervent believers in an unseen force that, in the words of George Carlin, loves us all but will without batting an eye send our spirits to a life of unremitting torture for eternity. In other words, a serial abuser of souls, the sort of fellow who rates a mention on the nightly news for locking children in a closet for months. This is to whom we pray.
So, you're religious. Good for you. Would you like special privileges with that? Would you like a permission slip that exempts you from laws that the rest of us must obey? Sure thing. No problem. Just say the word. Anything else you'd like? Perhaps we can arrange it for your meeting houses to be exempt from taxes because we'd do anything to please the most powerful force in the universe. Let us pay the tab. Just put in a good word!
Winsome creatures you are, enticing in a Wes Craven sort of way. We'd rather not get on your bad side, so let's try to abide by your Earthly rules that claim to ape how we'll be governed if it turns out your view of eternity is correct. Even though you are a minority and this is a democracy, it's probably prudent to indulge you.
And we shall hark to winsome extortion ("Nice little women's health clinic you have here. Be a shame if something were to happen to it.") threatening crimes sanctioned by Heaven. What a racket.
In America, we cut people a lot of slack if they claim to be fervent believers in an unseen force that, in the words of George Carlin, loves us all but will without batting an eye send our spirits to a life of unremitting torture for eternity. In other words, a serial abuser of souls, the sort of fellow who rates a mention on the nightly news for locking children in a closet for months. This is to whom we pray.
So, you're religious. Good for you. Would you like special privileges with that? Would you like a permission slip that exempts you from laws that the rest of us must obey? Sure thing. No problem. Just say the word. Anything else you'd like? Perhaps we can arrange it for your meeting houses to be exempt from taxes because we'd do anything to please the most powerful force in the universe. Let us pay the tab. Just put in a good word!
Winsome creatures you are, enticing in a Wes Craven sort of way. We'd rather not get on your bad side, so let's try to abide by your Earthly rules that claim to ape how we'll be governed if it turns out your view of eternity is correct. Even though you are a minority and this is a democracy, it's probably prudent to indulge you.
And we shall hark to winsome extortion ("Nice little women's health clinic you have here. Be a shame if something were to happen to it.") threatening crimes sanctioned by Heaven. What a racket.
40
Ms. Worthen, I'm afraid you're overthinking this. It's not about faith, it's about controlling illegal immigration, it's about not being a puppet for billionaire donors, it's about bringing back our manufacturing base, and it's about being fed up with political correctness. Evangelicals want all of those things, and Mr. Trump is the only supplier.
8
When you attempt to exert your power as a bloc of voters and you publicly claim a self assigned moral superiority for your group, then it reflects on you when your "supplier" as you say is a religious or racial bigot. It is called letting someone do your dirty work.
9
It would cheer up the rest of us if evangelicals could get out of politics and heed the teachings of the man they claim to worship. He said "Judge not that ye be not judged." "Let him who is without sin cast the first stone." He told his followers to visit prisoners and comfort the bereaved and feed the hungry and take in the stranger at the door. He recommended obeying the law. "Render under Caesar the things that are Caesar's." Donald Trump brandishing a Bible is the very image of hypocrisy.
20
The essential takeaway from this year's presidential campaign is that "Hate Sells." Sure, St. Paul said that God is love. Jesus said to love you enemies, love your neighbor, and to love each other.... But the REAL money is on Hate.
Evangelicals who say they hate modern culture, even when they speak in "winsome" tones, are still building a movement on Hate. When did we Christians lose our way so completely?
Evangelicals who say they hate modern culture, even when they speak in "winsome" tones, are still building a movement on Hate. When did we Christians lose our way so completely?
31
I would write that many racists find a home among the evangelicals. That is not to write that all evangelicals are racists. Whether it is the forthcoming non-white majority that disturbs such people, or that the evangelicals heartland is in the old confederacy, or that evangelicals have been implacable adversaries of our first African American president, there is a strong whiff of racism in that movement. Clearly, Dr. Carson appeals to many evangelicals, in the polls but Trump has surely been successfully playing to the anti-Latino members of the evangelical movement.
7
Voting for religious conservatism was a luxury of the American Growth Period. Now that we're on the decline, most people are more concerned about getting our jobs back, hence the rise of Trump.
10
The ostensible change of heart among evangelical leaders boils down to this: same message, different strategy. If they would like to be taken seriously, perhaps they should stop comparing family planning services and same-sex marriage to "the fleshpots of first-century Corinth." But that would require intellectual inquiry. I suppose it is easier to revise a political strategy.
57
This is all well and good, but with apologies to Sigmund Freud, sometimes crackpot is just a crackpot.
45
I think I'd be a lot more impressed with the evangelicals represented here if I saw somewhat less arrogance, hatred, and the pursuit of cash and fancy stuff coming from them.
Try a little more Jimmy Carter and a lot less Creflo Dollar and Pat Robertson, kids.
Try a little more Jimmy Carter and a lot less Creflo Dollar and Pat Robertson, kids.
157
Or Jerry Falwell the 2nd or Franklin Graham. Ugh- some really nasty attitudes.
Christians once were mystical. The teaching was to suffer now and reap your reward later in heaven. Today, many Christians have misplaced that devout penitent. Now they insist on everything this instant.
9
This just highlights the lack of tolerance, understanding, respect, and common sense that is prevalent among extreme religionists. In reality, they are actually completely lacking any moral compass. They worship money, and power over the lives of people who don't agree with them. They abhor integrity, fairness, and tolerance, in all their various forms. Never turn your back on any of them--they will stab you in the back, and crawl over you, in order to take everything you value. Just like Jesus, right?
30
Win some and lose some. Profits are without honor except in the 1%. Time for the white supremacists who actually make up a good part of the anti-Obama crowd to not pretend they have religion. Leave that for the corporations.
And it is devoutly to be wished that the silent majority if that is how the bigots define themselves, become silent again. How nice not to hear Trump rant, or a woman married 4 times with children from other men not pretend to be the face of some moral minority and ignore the laws of the country.
And it is devoutly to be wished that the silent majority if that is how the bigots define themselves, become silent again. How nice not to hear Trump rant, or a woman married 4 times with children from other men not pretend to be the face of some moral minority and ignore the laws of the country.
23
As a lawyer with a degree in American History, I find Molly Worthen's op-ed frightening. History as scholarship can be abused, as we see here. The ability to synthesize and locate information from a dense body of sources is a skill, if used properly that can tell a story and make a strong fact based argument.
Used improperly that skill can be used to cherry pick, write to a theme or thesis, and create misleading contexts, as we have here.
The issue in the 2016 campaign driving Donald Trump's nationwide support isn't an opportunity to crucify those of us in America who believe in God, a favored liberal pastime. Instead it speaks to a bigger picture, a yearning in America for morals, after the Obama presidency's war on them.
I really don't care what the rules are. I just want rules. What do we as a society condemn? What are we not willing to accept under any circumstances? What are the limits? Obama and his supporters advance a narrative that there are no rules, no limits, no baseline values. The only rules Obama supporters live by are that Obama walks on water, is perfect and it is a cardinal sin to ever disagree with anything Obama ever says or does, and that every person who disagrees (even in their minds) with Obama is a right wing Tea Party racist.
Evangelicals (a 4 letter way to describe Christians as zealots) simply want predictability. Some way of knowing if we have societal norms and standards. Obama supporters hate those.
Used improperly that skill can be used to cherry pick, write to a theme or thesis, and create misleading contexts, as we have here.
The issue in the 2016 campaign driving Donald Trump's nationwide support isn't an opportunity to crucify those of us in America who believe in God, a favored liberal pastime. Instead it speaks to a bigger picture, a yearning in America for morals, after the Obama presidency's war on them.
I really don't care what the rules are. I just want rules. What do we as a society condemn? What are we not willing to accept under any circumstances? What are the limits? Obama and his supporters advance a narrative that there are no rules, no limits, no baseline values. The only rules Obama supporters live by are that Obama walks on water, is perfect and it is a cardinal sin to ever disagree with anything Obama ever says or does, and that every person who disagrees (even in their minds) with Obama is a right wing Tea Party racist.
Evangelicals (a 4 letter way to describe Christians as zealots) simply want predictability. Some way of knowing if we have societal norms and standards. Obama supporters hate those.
7
The only rules that Obama supporters live by are that he walks on water? I guess law schools no longer graduate critical thinkers.
6
"I really don't care what the rules are. I just want rules."
Yes, please tell us what to do, master! Our brains are as chaff in the wind, flotsam on the storm-tossed sea! Our moral compass must be attuned to your true north! Rules, please. ANY RULES!
Yes, please tell us what to do, master! Our brains are as chaff in the wind, flotsam on the storm-tossed sea! Our moral compass must be attuned to your true north! Rules, please. ANY RULES!
13
"I really don't care what the rules are. I just want rules."
See why "libruls" think your type is dangerous?
See why "libruls" think your type is dangerous?
12
"Mr. Trump’s claim that illegal Mexican immigrants are “rapists,” "
False. He said the lawbreakers should be deported and
He said some are good and should be let in legally. So fed up with the untruths the Liberal Media constantly spews.
False. He said the lawbreakers should be deported and
He said some are good and should be let in legally. So fed up with the untruths the Liberal Media constantly spews.
8
No, he really did refer to them as rapists. Go back and watch the tape.
4
The full speech is easy to find on YouTube and "When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. [...] They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists" would seem to be pretty clearcut and hardly a Liberal Media untruth.
3
Check your facts. On June 16, 2015, Donald Trump said, "When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people." Look it up.
I'm getting so tired of people who vilify those who disagree with them, especially when they ignore the facts.
I'm getting so tired of people who vilify those who disagree with them, especially when they ignore the facts.
5
Thanks to Molly Worthen for bringing us up to date on the latest in the world of evangelical Christians.
No matter how “winsome” they are or pretend to be, evangelical Christians are still at odds with the rest of America in one important aspect. They still seem dead-bent on shoving their beliefs down our throats, whether or not they have resolved not to shout at us so much.
Maybe that is the appeal Donald Trump holds for evangelical Christians. He personifies the bully lurking just beneath the surface of so many evangelical Christians.
Of course, it also doesn’t hurt that Trump’s abhorrence of “the other” (foreigners, especially Mexicans and people of color, and Muslims) mirrors the intolerance of fundamentalist Christians, and his elevation of the importance of wealth rings true to the entrepreneurial operators of megachurches.
No matter how “winsome” they are or pretend to be, evangelical Christians are still at odds with the rest of America in one important aspect. They still seem dead-bent on shoving their beliefs down our throats, whether or not they have resolved not to shout at us so much.
Maybe that is the appeal Donald Trump holds for evangelical Christians. He personifies the bully lurking just beneath the surface of so many evangelical Christians.
Of course, it also doesn’t hurt that Trump’s abhorrence of “the other” (foreigners, especially Mexicans and people of color, and Muslims) mirrors the intolerance of fundamentalist Christians, and his elevation of the importance of wealth rings true to the entrepreneurial operators of megachurches.
56
"dead-bent" is right. That's where their prize lies.
1
Because Isis is made up of Southern Baptists.. right??
1
These arguments are much too complicated to be relevant or taken seriously. Donald Trump's supporters are bigoted and/or stupid.
39
The trouble with many of the American Christian Conservative movement is that they depend on their leaders to tell them what needs to be done. In the not too distance past, these leaders have raped their followers (Jim Baker), lived lives they tell their flock not to follow (Jimmy Swaggert and others.) We need Christian leaders who are true followers of Christ, not ones that just give a good speech and look good on TV.
16
The underlying assumption of far too many Christians across the spectrum is that the US is and always should be a Christian country, designed by and for Christians. Many tolerate, but do not accept as equals, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and other believers. Agnostics and atheists who doubt and question raise too many fears about beliefs Christians desperately cling to. I see a deep-seated need for a system of belief that answers all questions, provides a fixed worldview, eradicates the need for self-agency and personal responsibility, and provides an illusory reward of an afterlife. Christianity is based on belief, not observable, provable fact. What are Christians so afraid of?
32
Believe it or not dear author, enforcement of immigration law doesn't meet even the broadest definition of Xenophobia.
Trump has some statements on his website about forcing companies to have to pay H1-B visa workers prevailing wages and also to force companies to have to hire Americans at the unemployment line before calling for more immigrants. But in his speeches he says nothing but positive things about immigration.
What the author should be more concerned with is guys like Jeff Zuckerberg, the head of Facebook, who established a lobby group - FWD.us which is open about it's goal of getting more foreigners inside the country to compete with American workers. CEOs like Zuckerberg are apparently not satisfied that real wages for workers with less than a college degree have been flat or in decline for decades. Now they want to see declines in white collar worker wages. And yet, I don't think we will ever see a mainstream reporter do an article on FWD.us or Zuckerberg and point out that they are acting against American workers and for foreigners. We really do need some stories about the WorkerDetestia of Zuckerberg and his ilk. But alas, the elite rule the day.
Trump has some statements on his website about forcing companies to have to pay H1-B visa workers prevailing wages and also to force companies to have to hire Americans at the unemployment line before calling for more immigrants. But in his speeches he says nothing but positive things about immigration.
What the author should be more concerned with is guys like Jeff Zuckerberg, the head of Facebook, who established a lobby group - FWD.us which is open about it's goal of getting more foreigners inside the country to compete with American workers. CEOs like Zuckerberg are apparently not satisfied that real wages for workers with less than a college degree have been flat or in decline for decades. Now they want to see declines in white collar worker wages. And yet, I don't think we will ever see a mainstream reporter do an article on FWD.us or Zuckerberg and point out that they are acting against American workers and for foreigners. We really do need some stories about the WorkerDetestia of Zuckerberg and his ilk. But alas, the elite rule the day.
11
You might want to look up the name of the founder of Facebook.
4
Dr. Moore, It is not enough getting people to agree with you on a Sunday morning if they do not have the fortitude to incorporate the message in their daily lives. If Trump is managing to inspire these people,He is doing a good thing.
3
What American Christianity needs is simply this: Get out of the business of politics.
The church leadership seems not to realize that the declining numbers of those who identify with American Christianity can be directly traced back to the decision to be identified with the political right.
When I was growing up, Republicans worshiped side-by-side with Democrats. It was assumed that you checked your political affiliation at the front door of the church when you entered to worship. Sunday school class was not an endless discussion about abortion and gays.
When you choose one side, you alienate the other side. When you hammer away at only certain sins and ignore the rest, you become very narrow in your focus. And when you start to side-step the gospel, you eliminate the very thing that attracts people to the church from all walks of life.
The church leadership seems not to realize that the declining numbers of those who identify with American Christianity can be directly traced back to the decision to be identified with the political right.
When I was growing up, Republicans worshiped side-by-side with Democrats. It was assumed that you checked your political affiliation at the front door of the church when you entered to worship. Sunday school class was not an endless discussion about abortion and gays.
When you choose one side, you alienate the other side. When you hammer away at only certain sins and ignore the rest, you become very narrow in your focus. And when you start to side-step the gospel, you eliminate the very thing that attracts people to the church from all walks of life.
263
But Sunday morning was and still is the most racially colored segregated part of the American week.
The United Church of Christ, of Reverend Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. and formerly Barack H. Obama, was and still is a predominantly white Christian founded faith.
The United Church of Christ, of Reverend Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. and formerly Barack H. Obama, was and still is a predominantly white Christian founded faith.
7
This: "When I was growing up, Republicans worshiped side-by-side with Democrats. It was assumed that you checked your political affiliation at the front door of the church when you entered to worship."
I am grateful that at my devoutly evangelical church this morning, the sermon was on the upcoming election year+ (!) and about how to be a Christian is not to be a Republican; nor is it to be a Democrat. There are many individual members of our church affiliated with both parties, but as Christians, we can never have as our primary identity affiliation with any political organization.
Our speaker also cautioned that when we harp on politics, we forsake individual complexities for abstract principles (not to mentioned inevitably imperfect policies), and, worst of all, we put a stumbling block between whoever's listening to us and their potential approach to the compelling person of Jesus. The most we can legitimately try to do is point people towards God. After that each of us must have enough faith in God to trust Him to transform them *and we ourselves* in His time and in His way.
I am grateful that at my devoutly evangelical church this morning, the sermon was on the upcoming election year+ (!) and about how to be a Christian is not to be a Republican; nor is it to be a Democrat. There are many individual members of our church affiliated with both parties, but as Christians, we can never have as our primary identity affiliation with any political organization.
Our speaker also cautioned that when we harp on politics, we forsake individual complexities for abstract principles (not to mentioned inevitably imperfect policies), and, worst of all, we put a stumbling block between whoever's listening to us and their potential approach to the compelling person of Jesus. The most we can legitimately try to do is point people towards God. After that each of us must have enough faith in God to trust Him to transform them *and we ourselves* in His time and in His way.
3
I don't think there are a more than a handful of the rabid, fundamentalist, Evangelical Christians who would know who Dietrich Bonhoeffer was. One reason--he wasn't a millionaire, and he didn't preach the prosperity gospel.
And last time I checked, churches in America had more freedom than any one or any thing else in America--more freedom to con parishioners out of their hard earned money, more freedom to pay "megachurch" pastors hundreds of thousands of (tax-free) dollars and more freedom to use the tax-free money they receive to spend on lavish facilities, including pools, spas, pastoral living quarters, game rooms, cafeterias, ball fields, recreational centers, sound equipment, rock musicians, etc. and occasionally feed a few homeless folks.
If Jesus were alive today, he would have a field day driving the money changers out of American temples.
And last time I checked, churches in America had more freedom than any one or any thing else in America--more freedom to con parishioners out of their hard earned money, more freedom to pay "megachurch" pastors hundreds of thousands of (tax-free) dollars and more freedom to use the tax-free money they receive to spend on lavish facilities, including pools, spas, pastoral living quarters, game rooms, cafeterias, ball fields, recreational centers, sound equipment, rock musicians, etc. and occasionally feed a few homeless folks.
If Jesus were alive today, he would have a field day driving the money changers out of American temples.
202
The issue at the heart of Professor Worthen's piece is not very complicated. Religious institutions cannot indulge in political activity without corrupting their core spiritual mission. This was James Madison's point two centuries ago when he pointed out that separation of church and state was intended to protect both institutions.
The campaigns of Huckabee and Santorum illustrate Madison's point clearly. Both men claim that God endorses their political views, implying that anyone who opposes them defies divine will. This puts Jesus in the curious position of favoring conservative views on foreign policy, taxes and the proper role of government in our country. Evangelical congregations that endorse either candidate in effect subordinate their spiritual mission to the pursuit of controversial goals.
Linking Christianity or any other religion to a campaign to cut taxes is a sure method of arousing contempt for the doctrines and followers of that religion. The evangelicals discussed by Professor Worthen appear to understand this, but they do not represent the majority. Too many evangelicals mistake their cultural biases (opposition to gays) for the teachings of Jesus and thus they remain determined to carry the symbol of the cross into the political arena. The predictable result will be a further decline in the number of Americans who identify with the faith of the evangelicals. Whether or not that outcome is a cause for regret is a matter of opinion.
The campaigns of Huckabee and Santorum illustrate Madison's point clearly. Both men claim that God endorses their political views, implying that anyone who opposes them defies divine will. This puts Jesus in the curious position of favoring conservative views on foreign policy, taxes and the proper role of government in our country. Evangelical congregations that endorse either candidate in effect subordinate their spiritual mission to the pursuit of controversial goals.
Linking Christianity or any other religion to a campaign to cut taxes is a sure method of arousing contempt for the doctrines and followers of that religion. The evangelicals discussed by Professor Worthen appear to understand this, but they do not represent the majority. Too many evangelicals mistake their cultural biases (opposition to gays) for the teachings of Jesus and thus they remain determined to carry the symbol of the cross into the political arena. The predictable result will be a further decline in the number of Americans who identify with the faith of the evangelicals. Whether or not that outcome is a cause for regret is a matter of opinion.
153
C-O-R-R-U-P-T-I-O-N is the word to describe religionists who wallow in the politics of intolerance and exclusion, and specific social issues, like sexual orientation and family planning.
13
Well said, it's a bit more complicated than that, isn't it?
As Prof. Worthen points out, William Wilberforce injected himself into the political sphere to end slavery in the British Empire (as did the American abolitionists in the USA). Such actions would seem to exalt religion rather than corrupt it.
What seems to have happened in the last 50 years is that American evangelicals have been highly selective of what aspects of their religious heritage they pursue in the political realm, and these are what Bonhoeffer might call "cheap grace" -- pursuing ends that are easy.
Raging against abortion does not require personal sacrifice, whereas giving to the needy, volunteering to uplift the poor, loving enemies rather than judging them, maybe even voting for higher taxes to help fellow citizens rather than indulge in personal gratification--is much harder.
It would seem that pursuing the latter in the political sphere might have a positive effect on the public's regard for Christianity.
As Prof. Worthen points out, William Wilberforce injected himself into the political sphere to end slavery in the British Empire (as did the American abolitionists in the USA). Such actions would seem to exalt religion rather than corrupt it.
What seems to have happened in the last 50 years is that American evangelicals have been highly selective of what aspects of their religious heritage they pursue in the political realm, and these are what Bonhoeffer might call "cheap grace" -- pursuing ends that are easy.
Raging against abortion does not require personal sacrifice, whereas giving to the needy, volunteering to uplift the poor, loving enemies rather than judging them, maybe even voting for higher taxes to help fellow citizens rather than indulge in personal gratification--is much harder.
It would seem that pursuing the latter in the political sphere might have a positive effect on the public's regard for Christianity.
3
As a stickler for proper grammar, I am obligated to note that Jeremiah Johnson's statement that "Mr. Trump does not fear man nor will he allow deception and lies to go unnoticed” is not a complete sentence. It needs to end with "unless they are his own."
61
Would someone provide even one scintilla of evidence that Donald Trump is a Christian? Every crude utterance, every manipulative deal, every arrogant oink, every misogynist rant, every racist bleat - suggests otherwise. He violates all Ten Commandments, all the time.
I'm an atheist, so I don't really care, but how stupid can people be?
I'm an atheist, so I don't really care, but how stupid can people be?
218
Well he's white, with a German background, so genetically speaking, he MUST be Christian.
The reference to Bonhoeffer is especially appropriate. I always recommend to any Christian believer Bonhoeffer's "The Cost of Discipleship."
7
Christians misapply their religion when they hold it as a standard to judge others rather than keep it for themselves.
I find it particularly objectionable when they attempt to apply it with the force of law.
Christians has become their own worst enemy.
I find it particularly objectionable when they attempt to apply it with the force of law.
Christians has become their own worst enemy.
85
Toning it down would be really helpful. When you "believe in your beliefs" you end up hurting people. Any agenda that is based in fundamentalism is bound to be destructive. Believe all you want but when you think you have the answer best you keep it to yourself.
20
Hearing the "goals" of these "christian" GOP followers only makes me wish the end times were here and they could all be raptured away. That would leave us "left behind" to finally get on with a government that supports the people, not just the rich who manipulate the strings of these puppet christians.
82
Who gets to go to Mars?
He is the only guy running who knows how to provide badly needed jobs, thus reducing crime, giving us all pride in ourselves, improving the decaying infrastructure, again providing jobs, bringing back industries, using the great knowledge gained by our veterans, again providing jobs. This, only he can do that, believe it! He is NOT in anyone's pocket like rest of the contenders in BOTH parties. He is our NEW POPE!
7
How will he do those things? The sheer force of his personality is not actually, despite his own (and your apparent) belief in it, enough to move mountains.
22
Yeah, trump "says" all that, with no mention of how exactly he will miraculously accomplish it all. Sounds like you're worshipping a false god based on empty promises.
28
And what specifics has Mr. Trump provided detailing how he'll achieve these goals?
12
I'm really tired of terminology describing evangelical Christians who want political power (and money) as somehow moral.
It is immoral to try to gain power to force other people to live in your Christian world view instead of their own. This is what evangelicals winsomely aspire to do as they try to gain more and more political power.
See "Kim Davis, County Clerk" and her actions and the accolades awarded her recently.
There is nothing moral about this.
It is immoral to try to gain power to force other people to live in your Christian world view instead of their own. This is what evangelicals winsomely aspire to do as they try to gain more and more political power.
See "Kim Davis, County Clerk" and her actions and the accolades awarded her recently.
There is nothing moral about this.
165
I think Molly Worthen talks to too many preacher men and too few average GOP voting Christians...who are more fundamentalist than evangelical.
And, to them, Jesus runs a poor second to the fire and brimstone, punishmnet and judgment of the Old Testament rules and regulations. Jesus is really just their excuse to get to the prophets.
And, to them, Jesus runs a poor second to the fire and brimstone, punishmnet and judgment of the Old Testament rules and regulations. Jesus is really just their excuse to get to the prophets.
76
Stop patronizing Trump's voters. They are voting their economic interests just as the governing elites who control both political parties have been doing for the past 40 years. Trump is remaking the Republican Party and bringing about a fundamental realignment in American politics, advocating government of the people, by the people, and for the people. What's wrong with that?
15
That it's not true.
4
Trump's economic platform (like his foreign affairs platform) is nothing but empty promises. He'll be the best job creator ever - but exactly how, he has given us no clue. He'll round up 11 million illegal immigrants and deport them - but how, no idea. He'll end China's currency manipulations, but - you guessed it - no hint of how.
So if Trump's fans are acting in their economic self-interest, then their self-interest is based on wishful thinking, not based on actual policy proposals from the Donald.
politicsbyeccehomo.wordpress.com
So if Trump's fans are acting in their economic self-interest, then their self-interest is based on wishful thinking, not based on actual policy proposals from the Donald.
politicsbyeccehomo.wordpress.com
4
First, there are no "Trump voters" as yet. Second, in what way are they voting their economic interests? Trump has not announced any economic policy, unless one thinks alienating China and spending hundreds of billions on deporting Mexicans is sound economic policy. Perhaps you will be happy to take a job picking lettuce and after work you can go to walmart and spend $17 for the head of lettuce you picked and get that new lawn sprinkler you needed which will cost about $87 since apparently we will no longer be trading with China.
As for the "governing elites" comment, you are demonstrating the ignorance of the average American. Yours is a false equivalence as the parties do not behave the same way. The extremism found on the right has no equivalent on the left. By the way, Trump is just another form of right wing extremism.
As for the "governing elites" comment, you are demonstrating the ignorance of the average American. Yours is a false equivalence as the parties do not behave the same way. The extremism found on the right has no equivalent on the left. By the way, Trump is just another form of right wing extremism.
1
There are always Christians who are trying to invent a more consistent, streamlined, and non-contradictory Jesus. For some, in the early church, this meant a merciful Jesus with no connection to the sometimes vengeful Hebrew God. They held that Christianity was a gospel of love to which the Jewish God of Law was totally hostile...Today we often pick and choose the parts of the Bible we are comfortable with and discard the rest. Often this is done in an attempt to conform to the current culture. We need to be aware that not teaching a biblical truth or doctrine is false teaching. We need to remember that the primary purpose for the coming of Jesus was not to teach us how to do good works or to feed the poor or to love our neighbor, although He did. He came to save men's souls; that they would not perish but have eternal life.
No cherry picking Aaron - I am sure you don't wear mixed fibers!
2
It all seems to come down to what sort of social entrepreneur Jesus was, eh?
We will never know what motivated him to take it to the cross.
We will never know what motivated him to take it to the cross.
1
"DONALD TRUMP’S high poll numbers among evangelicals have preoccupied the media for months."
People lie during polling. Who knows how many of those who responded to these polls are actually "evangelical", simply go to church once a week, or really don't care.
People lie during polling. Who knows how many of those who responded to these polls are actually "evangelical", simply go to church once a week, or really don't care.
11
The Moral Minority, Ms Worthen? Sorry, no longer interested in the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, or their anti-hero Donald Trump. No evangelical ethics, no religious liberty among the Southern fundamental Baptists. Evangelical Christianity is not counterculture. Comparing the Obama administration contraception mandate to the policies of Nazi Germany? PLEASE! "Winsomeness" among Conservative evangelicals? Like winsomeness among pit bulls. H.L. Mencken spoke truth to power when he called fundamentalists "uneducated barefoot bumpkins". Mr. Trump (soon to be an angry xenophobic also-ran wannabe POTUS) is popular among the evangelical rank and file. That says a bitter mouthful.
20
Don't insult pit-bulls -- many are wonderful dogs.
2
I have to say, that the voices of hate, not just from Trump, but all the leaders is outshouting any other message. This comes from years of building a party based on bigotry and xenophobia.
What really worries me is how much that appeal to hate and anger will be accepted by the rest of the country. This could end up being another dark period for the country. I keep hoping that we will learn from the hate we have had in the past, but it doesn't look like we will.
What really worries me is how much that appeal to hate and anger will be accepted by the rest of the country. This could end up being another dark period for the country. I keep hoping that we will learn from the hate we have had in the past, but it doesn't look like we will.
47
The rape comment originated from a media report of a high percentage of immigrant women being raped on their way to and after getting into the US on an undocumented basis. Mr. Trump only repeated the medias report in a perceived rude fashion despite the news being true. The record of criminal offenses including rape which are attributed to undocumented aliens many not reprimanded or in custody of law enforcement officials is extremely shocking to a majority of Americans. This article is undoubtedly pointed at denying the truth and blaming Mr. Trump for incitement not of his creation.
7
Very interesting and almost encouraging. But it seems to me that, (speaking not as a Christian but as someone fascinated by the Bible), being a Christian is by definition a "countercultural" position. It's an attempt to live in spiritual place divorced not only from social norms & politics, but personal self-interest. Love your enemies, give away your possessions, forsake your family and follow. Hard to see how people who need "spokespersons" and PACS could be acting as Christians.
74
Death is inevitable for all. One hopes that when one dies one feels one has written something into the book of life that will help keep the story going, and being read.
1
Why must the media perpetually conflate *illegal* immigration with xenophobia? We are a country. We have laws. The majority of the nation supports *legal* immigration, the majority of the nation does not support illegal immigration.
12
We too have laws against the hiring of illegal immigrants. Yet, ask the seasonal crop growers, local contractors, and the wealthy who need their cooks, housekeepers and au pairs where they go for their pool of labor.
4
In the history book "The Zealot", written by a converted American Christian. the historical setting of Jesus feels vaguely familiar. The Romans are building a new commercial/residential project in the north of Galilee, employing many carpenters, stone masons and other poor workers in Galilee, while imposing crushing taxes on them. The temple class in Jerusalem is also making handsome profits from religious sacrifices and rituals required of the same poor. The attempt of Jesus to disrupt this order did not work out any better than other zealots before or after.
This coalition of plutocratic power and religion built on the backs of the devout poor is a repetitive theme. Trump appears to see himself as the latest manifestation of Imperial Roman Emperor with his hotel/casino projects designed to drain money from the laboring class.
Even though common people can actually vote these days, some Charlie Brown Christians seem to be falling for the same old football kick routine once again. And its not just Trump, its the ideology of the GOP, regardless of the candidate: give more money to the wealthy through low wages and tax breaks and some crumbs will trickle down to you.
Good Grief!
This coalition of plutocratic power and religion built on the backs of the devout poor is a repetitive theme. Trump appears to see himself as the latest manifestation of Imperial Roman Emperor with his hotel/casino projects designed to drain money from the laboring class.
Even though common people can actually vote these days, some Charlie Brown Christians seem to be falling for the same old football kick routine once again. And its not just Trump, its the ideology of the GOP, regardless of the candidate: give more money to the wealthy through low wages and tax breaks and some crumbs will trickle down to you.
Good Grief!
117
There isn't any significant difference between what would happen under a Hillary Clinton presidency and any of the donor class Republican candidates. The donor classes of both parties favor the same policies. You will note that Obama - when forced to raise taxes due to the "fiscal cliff", did no more than Romney would have - and then made the rest of the Bush tax cuts permanent. Obama is in favor of the H1-B program and immigration - just like the Republican CEOs.
Only Trump and Bernie Sanders are talking about any deviations from the standard donor class policies. I believe only Trump, Sanders and Rand Paul have spoken out against the secret Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal under negotiation. A deal negotiated in secret so people don't protest it before it is made official. Although there have been protests on the basis of leaks. The only way we no anything about the TPP is through leaks. Great way to negotiation a trade deal - in total secrecy - and it isn't even a topic at the Republican debates.
Only Trump and Bernie Sanders are talking about any deviations from the standard donor class policies. I believe only Trump, Sanders and Rand Paul have spoken out against the secret Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal under negotiation. A deal negotiated in secret so people don't protest it before it is made official. Although there have been protests on the basis of leaks. The only way we no anything about the TPP is through leaks. Great way to negotiation a trade deal - in total secrecy - and it isn't even a topic at the Republican debates.
4
"David Barton, the activist and pseudo-historian who helped vandalize Texas textbook guidelines, promises that “America can reclaim greatness” if its citizens recover their Christian heritage. He now runs a super PAC backing Ted Cruz, but his pledge echoes Mr. Trump’s vow to “make America great again” — a slogan that resonates with evangelical voters who feel the country slipping out of their grip."
So America is not great? And to what era do they propose to take us back to? To see how many more young men can be killed in the middle eastern sand piles? Or maybe another occupation like the Philippines.
Wen the U.S.rescued Europe from the effects of WWII maybe, but what of since then. Oh they are going to make us a Christian Nation just like the Puritans did. We might have to kill off a few more natives to reach that goal, but it was all justified getting rid of the heathens.
So I say to them, if you do not think America is great, just move on, we do not need your kind here.
So America is not great? And to what era do they propose to take us back to? To see how many more young men can be killed in the middle eastern sand piles? Or maybe another occupation like the Philippines.
Wen the U.S.rescued Europe from the effects of WWII maybe, but what of since then. Oh they are going to make us a Christian Nation just like the Puritans did. We might have to kill off a few more natives to reach that goal, but it was all justified getting rid of the heathens.
So I say to them, if you do not think America is great, just move on, we do not need your kind here.
95
Ted Cruz will be cruising for a long time while nobody is listening to his nincompoop messages, while Donald Trump is heading all the way to the Oval Office!!
2
Whatever America is, it will be a lot more over-crowded version of itself in the future. Everyone, yourself, Hillary, Trump, Sanders, Bush, etc. is in favor of infinite population growth via immigration. So don't get too cozy with the America you see today because the population is going up all the time. 100 million more people are predicted in the next 50 years, and there are forces working to make that higher. Immigration Reform was a code word for Immigration Increase. Besides legalizing the illegals, it increased immigration in areas that the CEOs salivate over - tech workers and other skilled categories. And once you get in a tech worker, you get their spouse and children as well, and their parents. The parents then get in all their other children. Who also get in their spouses, who get in their parents. And on it goes via "family repatriation".
2
O winsome evangelicals
Are just the kind to be,
Their winsomeness I must admit
Is what appeals to me.
Now Donald Trump may winsome
I hope he'll losesome too,
Backing Don, Evangelicals
Will have a lot to rue.
Are just the kind to be,
Their winsomeness I must admit
Is what appeals to me.
Now Donald Trump may winsome
I hope he'll losesome too,
Backing Don, Evangelicals
Will have a lot to rue.
75
Is Donald Trump the subject of Daniel 7 and Revelation 13?
2
More like the cover of Mad Magazine or The National Lampoon.
2
It would be horrible to enforce immigration law and try and get jobs back that have been lost to other countries. Let's continue to do what the CEOs and the donor class want from both parties.
2