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In an extensive piece in the Atlantic, former George W. Bush speechwriter Peter Wehner explained that some evangelical leaders are picking through the wreckage of their congregations that were torn apart by the influence of former president Donald Trump.
Wehner, a highly vocal Christian, has been no friend of Trump and is worried that the Christian faith has been damaged by the embrace of the one-term president by high-profile evangelical leaders which, in turn, has left some congregations in tatters as Trump supporters drag his politics into the daily church dealings.
Case in point, he notes, is a battle at a Virginia church where congregants were influenced by Trump's toxic rhetoric.
"The election of the elders of an evangelical church is usually an uncontroversial, even unifying event. But this summer, at an influential megachurch in Northern Virginia, something went badly wrong. A trio of elders didn't receive 75 percent of the vote, the threshold necessary to be installed," he reported before pointing out that "... church members had been misled, having been told, among other things, that the three individuals nominated to be elders would advocate selling the church building to Muslims, who would convert it into a mosque."
According to Wehner, David Platt, the 43-year-old minister at McLean Bible Church had already been facing accusations " ... by a small but zealous group within his church of 'wokeness' and being 'left of center,' of pushing a "social justice" agenda and promoting critical race theory, and of attempting to 'purge conservative members.'"
As Wehner explains, what happened at McLean Bible Church is not an isolated event.
"What happened at McLean Bible Church is happening all over the evangelical world. Influential figures such as the theologian Russell Moore and the Bible teacher Beth Moore felt compelled to leave the Southern Baptist Convention; both were targeted by right-wing elements within the SBC," he explained. "The root of the discord lies in the fact that many Christians have embraced the worst aspects of our culture and our politics. When the Christian faith is politicized, churches become repositories not of grace but of grievances, places where tribal identities are reinforced, where fears are nurtured, and where aggression and nastiness are sacralized. The result is not only wounding the nation; it's having a devastating impact on the Christian faith."
Speaking with Wehner, historian George Marsden explained that "political loyalties can sometimes be so strong that they create a religious like faith that overrides or even transforms a more traditional religious faith," the author recalled.
"When Trump was able to add open hatred and resentments to the political-religious stance of 'true believers,' it crossed a line. Tribal instincts seem to have become overwhelming," Marsden explained before adding that Trump's Christian followers, "have come to see a gospel of hatreds, resentments, vilifications, put-downs, and insults as expressions of their Christianity, for which they too should be willing to fight."
"For many Christians, their politics has become more of an identity marker than their faith. They might insist that they are interpreting their politics through the prism of scripture, with the former subordinate to the latter, but in fact scripture and biblical ethics are often distorted to fit their politics," Wehner wrote adding, "The former president normalized a form of discourse that made the once-shocking seem routine. Russell Moore laments the 'pugilism of the Trump era, in which anything short of cruelty is seen as weakness.' The problem facing the evangelical church, then, is not just that it has failed to inculcate adherents with its values—it's that when it has succeeded in doing so, those values have not always been biblical."
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Ron DeSantis provides a 'sneak preview' of how the GOP plans to disrupt Biden initiatives
October 24, 2021
In a column for the Daily Beast, journalist Wajahat Ali suggested that Republicans will go to extraordinary lengths to disrupt President Joe Biden's agenda in the near future even if it means the deaths of thousands of Americans -- including children.
As his "Exhibit A" he offers off up the recent actions of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) who, he claims, has already shown that he cares little about the safety of his constituents as long as he raises his profile by battling with the Biden administration.
Calling the Republican Party "death cultists" over their opposition to Biden and CDC health mandates aimed at eliminating the spread of Covid-19, Ali pointed to DeSantis attempting to put up roadblocks to hamper health officials.
"Florida's Ron DeSantis gave us a sneak preview of how Republican leaders will challenge the Biden Administration's proposed mandate that would require private sector employers with 100 or more employees to either vaccinate their staff or impose weekly COVID tests," the Beast columnist wrote before adding, "DeSantis called for a special session of the state legislature, which will cost Florida taxpayers $1 million, to oppose the federal mandate and punish businesses with vaccine mandates, recommending they be held liable if a worker has an 'adverse reaction.' He also said these businesses will no longer qualify for COVID-19 liability protection."
Following up on his "sneak preview" theme, Ali continued, "This madness is just a sneak preview of the all-out obstruction by the GOP and its base once the FDA approves vaccines for children ages 5 to 12," before writing, "As I've written before, we cannot win over a pro-death cult. I'm tired of bending the knee to violent, ideological extremists and being hijacked by their white rage, economic anxiety, delusional conspiracy theories, and perpetual sense of victimhood. Their selfish actions are jeopardizing our children's lives during an ongoing pandemic."
He then suggested a plan to battle the GOP "death cult."
"If it's litigation GOP wants, then two can play at that game. Businesses and school districts need to fight back in court to protect their rights from Republican intimidation and overreach," he proposed before adding, "[Attorney General Merrick] Garland needs to unleash The Department of Justice and consider criminal investigations if Republican anti-mask and anti-vaccine policies have misrepresented information in a way that actively led to deaths across the nation. Prosecutorial authorities at the federal, state and local levels should be encouraged to hold elected individuals accountable."
Turning back to DeSantis, he concluded, "In Florida, all you have to do is follow the facts. It will take you to the graveyard where you'll find 58,000 tombstones—and counting."
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Inside Trump and Eastman's Jan. 2 'Big Lie' call with more than 300 GOP state legislators
October 24, 2021
Michigan Senate Oversight Committee Chair Ed McBroom (R-Vulcan) was on a call with hundreds of GOP lawmakers days before the Jan. 6 insurrection with President Donald Trump and his legal advisers, the Washington Post reported Saturday.
Trump was on the call along lawyers John Eastman — who wrote a memo outlining how Vice President Mike Pence could disregard the 2020 Electoral College vote and install Trump for another term — and Rudy Giuliani, who Michigan House Republicans allowed to lead a long post-election hearing airing myriad baseless right-wing election conspiracy theories.
The call with 300 state legislators was a strategy session on decertifying 2020 presidential election results. Michigan's Board of State Canvassers approved in November President Joe Biden's more than 154,000-vote victory over Trump and Michigan's electors cast their ballots for Biden in December.
“You are the real power," Trump told the state lawmakers, according to the Washington Examiner. “You're the ones that are going to make the decision."
The Post also reported that Giuliani ran a “command center" at the Willard, a Washington, D.C., hotel, plotting with Eastman and other Trump loyalists like Stephen Bannon about how to overturn the 2020 election.
McBroom told the Washington Post of the call he was on: “I didn't need any convincing about our plenary powers," adding, “I was listening to hear whether they had any evidence to substantiate claims" of significant voter fraud that could change the results in Michigan. His office did not immediate return a request for comment from the Advance.
McBroom told the Post he did not hear such evidence and didn't support efforts to delay the vote count. However, a majority of the GOP caucus in the Michigan Senate went on to sign a letter asking members of Congress to examine baseless allegations of election fraud. An earlier version asked to delay the electoral vote count, as the Advance reported on Jan. 6.
The signees included state Sens. John Bizon (R-Battle Creek), Tom Barrett (R-Potterville), Kim LaSata (R-Bainbridge Twp.), Roger Victory (R-Georgetown Twp.), Dale Zorn (R-Ida), Lana Theis (R-Brighton), Kevin Daley (R-Lum), Dan Lauwers (R-Brockway), Curtis VanderWall (R-Ludington), Rick Outman (R-Six Lakes) and Jim Runestad (R-White Lake). The Advance noted at the time that McBroom, who also held hearings in which Republicans made unproven election fraud claims, did not sign on.
Lawmakers in Michigan, Georgia, Arizona, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania also signed letters to Pence asking to delay certification. The Advance reported the 11 Michigan House members who signed on were: Reps. Julie Alexander (R-Hanover), Ken Borton (R-Gaylord), Steve Carra (R-Three Rivers), Gary Eisen (R-St. Clair Twp.), Beth Griffin (R-Mattawan), Matt Maddock (R-Millford), Luke Meerman (R-Coopersville), John Reilly (R-Oakland), Daire Rendon (R-Lake City), Mary Whiteford (R-Casco Twp.) and Doug Wozniak (R-Shelby Twp.).
In June, the Senate Oversight Committee led by McBroom released a 35-page report concluding that there was no widespread evidence of voter fraud and debunking several conspiracy theories.
“Our clear finding is that citizens should be confident the results represent the true results of the ballots cast by the people of Michigan," the report reads. “The committee strongly recommends citizens use a critical eye and ear toward those who have pushed demonstrably false theories for their own personal gain."
Trump was incensed by the report and attacked both McBroom and Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey (R-Clarklake).
“Michigan state Sens. Mike Shirkey and Ed McBroom are doing everything possible to stop voter audits in order to hide the truth about November 3rd," Trump said in a statement. “The Senate 'investigation' of the election is a cover up and a method of getting out of a forensic audit for the examination of the Presidential contest."
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Michigan Advance is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Michigan Advance maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Susan Demas for questions: info@michiganadvance.com. Follow Michigan Advance on Facebook and Twitter.
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