I won’t vote for either of them (if your vote really mattered, they wouldn’t let you do it). However, there are so many issues here. Most important is that the term “Evangelical” doesn’t mean anything. According to all the polls I have seen over the last 5 years, 60% of Evangelicals believe there is more than one way to Heaven. In other words, they aren’t even Christians. Also, in 2016, the Evangelical lobby not only embraced Trump (they were probably right) but they proclaimed him to be a Christian! It’s one thing to proclaim that he will generate policies that will be favorable to Christians (He did) and that God can use him for good but Trump is not a Christian. Indeed while campaigning in 2016 when someone asked him about some of the things which he had repented, he said he had never asked forgiveness because he had not done anything he needed forgiveness for! You don’t need to know anymore than that.
The problem I have with these so called Never Trump Evangelicals such as David French and Russell Moore is that they ignore the same traits in the Democrat opposition that they condemn in Trump. Hillary Clinton was an agent of the Deep State who never found a progressive cause she couldn’t support. A rabid proponent of abortion on demand. She also proclaimed openly that churches were going to have to change (a blatant attack on the 1st amendment). Finally, she was a blatant war mongerer who is proud of the fact that she got Obama to attack Libya (under false pretenses and destroyed a country with a strong economy and a leader who despite being a bad guy himself had moderated over the previous 20 years and also protected Christians living in his country. They still have not recovered and slavery has been reintroduced to the area. Joe Biden has been a chameleon his entire career and has a history of adultery (he was still married to his first wife when he began an affair with his next). He has lied his entire life in order to make this average Joe more impressive than he is. He had to drop out of the 1988 Democrat primaries because of his tendencies of plagiarising speeches and papers. And then all the graft that he has supported and benefitted from during his time as both VP and President. Then finally you have Kamala whose career path was to sleep her way to every promotion she ever got. And more importantly, she is a Communist who doesn’t even try to hide it.
Yes, these are the people French and Moore and their ilk support as superior alternatives to Trump. Given the character of all involved, one has to just assume that they have walked away from their faith and now support abortion on demand, the LGBTQ+ (hope I got that right), sex changes for minors, and the discrimination of Christian businesses. French writing for the NYT is the perfect spot for him. Russell Moore heading Christianity Today is a travesty.
I recently read the book The Immoral Majority by Ben Howe. He makes the case that evangelicals betrayed their values by backing Trump in 2016. Howe actually succeeded in making me seriously question whether my vote for Trump in 2016 was morally justified. After thinking about it, I came to the conclusion that I had indeed betrayed my values by voting for Trump. However, I also concluded that it was necessary.
First, it seems clear now that of all the Republican candidates in 2016, Trump was the only one who could have won (a sad reflection on our country). Second, the Supreme Court was on the line. If the radical left had gotten a majority on the court, I don’t see how our country could have ever recovered from that.
So many of the Never Trump evangelicals can’t seem to appreciate that, for all of Trump’s moral failings (and he certainly has plenty), he has done more to protect religious freedom and constitutional government than any Republican president since Reagan.
I think Jesus’s teaching to “Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s” applies here, as he was saying that there are different levels and that to mix levels is an error. What this means is that you don’t hold your presidential candidate to the same standards as you would your pastor.
I wish Trump wasn’t the nominee this time around. I would have preferred Nicki Haley or almost anyone else. It’s frustrating to hear conservatives bemoan how divided the country is when they chose to nominate the most polarizing candidate possible. But if Trump wins, he could very well fill two or three more Supreme Court seats in the next four years as I suspect some of the aging conservatives on the court may retire. So Trump has my vote. As long as the Supreme Court is not in the Left’s hands, I believe our country will be able survive whatever turmoil lies ahead.
John, I pretty much agree with your assessment. I voted for Trump the first time primarily because of his pledge to place originalist judges on the Supreme Court. He did a great job with that. And when you look at the left today with gender issues, antisemetic issues, border issues, etc, it comes down to the lesser of two evils. Politics is messy.
Thanks Anne - I love how you always go right to the heart of the issue; our sin and the Gospel. And I love how you do it in a way that is so subtly snarky yet totally real and approachable. If you were Southern, I can hear you saying "well bless your heart" while dishing out a much needed and incredibly pointed case of verbal whoopass.
As for voting, my God, do people actually think there is a sinless candidate??? David - murderer and adulterer - yet a man after God's own heart??? Moses - murderer and prideful. Abraham - liar and coward. I could go on; point is, there are no perfect people!!! At least Trump acknowledges God; and the Republicans, as vile as they are, have not thrown God out of their platform! What are these people thinking??? We only have one Messiah, and he isn't in politics.
Lastly, your cat is suffering from end stage cattism, (she's dying). My mother and several friends have had that same situation and the only way to stop it, I'm sorry to say, is to help your Lucy walk the rainbow bridge. If this is the beginning, it's only going to get worse. I understand that is a tough decision. But if you don't want your entire house to stink to heaven like cat piss for the next three-five years, (I don't exaggerate, because she will find innovative and horrifying places to go to make sure she is not forgotten), there is no other solution. Unless of course, you want to put a diaper on her. I wish you the best.
Aww. I also have a Grandma cat. I offer three ideas that worked for me, with no guarantee for efficacy outside Oregon :). 1) I set her up in my sewing/utility room, free from stress. A sort of palatial crate. She really did not want company other than me. 2) started calming probiotics I got on Amazon, “Purina Pro Plan Calming Care”and 3) used herbal “no spraying” spray, also from Amazon, “Nature’s Miracle, No More Spraying.” Maybe she is just stressed :)
The Evangelicals for Harris website apparently was prepared in support of President Biden's reelection. The abortion section is found under "On the Issues," "Compassion for Families," and "Overturning Roe, Miscarriages, and IVF: Extremism Versus Compassion." It begins, "Since Mr. Trump's Supreme Court Justices overturned Roe v. Wade, our country has been plunged into chaos."
They also state, "As a devout Catholic, Joe Biden personally doesn't like abortion."
I won’t vote for either of them (if your vote really mattered, they wouldn’t let you do it). However, there are so many issues here. Most important is that the term “Evangelical” doesn’t mean anything. According to all the polls I have seen over the last 5 years, 60% of Evangelicals believe there is more than one way to Heaven. In other words, they aren’t even Christians. Also, in 2016, the Evangelical lobby not only embraced Trump (they were probably right) but they proclaimed him to be a Christian! It’s one thing to proclaim that he will generate policies that will be favorable to Christians (He did) and that God can use him for good but Trump is not a Christian. Indeed while campaigning in 2016 when someone asked him about some of the things which he had repented, he said he had never asked forgiveness because he had not done anything he needed forgiveness for! You don’t need to know anymore than that.
The problem I have with these so called Never Trump Evangelicals such as David French and Russell Moore is that they ignore the same traits in the Democrat opposition that they condemn in Trump. Hillary Clinton was an agent of the Deep State who never found a progressive cause she couldn’t support. A rabid proponent of abortion on demand. She also proclaimed openly that churches were going to have to change (a blatant attack on the 1st amendment). Finally, she was a blatant war mongerer who is proud of the fact that she got Obama to attack Libya (under false pretenses and destroyed a country with a strong economy and a leader who despite being a bad guy himself had moderated over the previous 20 years and also protected Christians living in his country. They still have not recovered and slavery has been reintroduced to the area. Joe Biden has been a chameleon his entire career and has a history of adultery (he was still married to his first wife when he began an affair with his next). He has lied his entire life in order to make this average Joe more impressive than he is. He had to drop out of the 1988 Democrat primaries because of his tendencies of plagiarising speeches and papers. And then all the graft that he has supported and benefitted from during his time as both VP and President. Then finally you have Kamala whose career path was to sleep her way to every promotion she ever got. And more importantly, she is a Communist who doesn’t even try to hide it.
Yes, these are the people French and Moore and their ilk support as superior alternatives to Trump. Given the character of all involved, one has to just assume that they have walked away from their faith and now support abortion on demand, the LGBTQ+ (hope I got that right), sex changes for minors, and the discrimination of Christian businesses. French writing for the NYT is the perfect spot for him. Russell Moore heading Christianity Today is a travesty.
I recently read the book The Immoral Majority by Ben Howe. He makes the case that evangelicals betrayed their values by backing Trump in 2016. Howe actually succeeded in making me seriously question whether my vote for Trump in 2016 was morally justified. After thinking about it, I came to the conclusion that I had indeed betrayed my values by voting for Trump. However, I also concluded that it was necessary.
First, it seems clear now that of all the Republican candidates in 2016, Trump was the only one who could have won (a sad reflection on our country). Second, the Supreme Court was on the line. If the radical left had gotten a majority on the court, I don’t see how our country could have ever recovered from that.
So many of the Never Trump evangelicals can’t seem to appreciate that, for all of Trump’s moral failings (and he certainly has plenty), he has done more to protect religious freedom and constitutional government than any Republican president since Reagan.
I think Jesus’s teaching to “Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s” applies here, as he was saying that there are different levels and that to mix levels is an error. What this means is that you don’t hold your presidential candidate to the same standards as you would your pastor.
I wish Trump wasn’t the nominee this time around. I would have preferred Nicki Haley or almost anyone else. It’s frustrating to hear conservatives bemoan how divided the country is when they chose to nominate the most polarizing candidate possible. But if Trump wins, he could very well fill two or three more Supreme Court seats in the next four years as I suspect some of the aging conservatives on the court may retire. So Trump has my vote. As long as the Supreme Court is not in the Left’s hands, I believe our country will be able survive whatever turmoil lies ahead.
John, I pretty much agree with your assessment. I voted for Trump the first time primarily because of his pledge to place originalist judges on the Supreme Court. He did a great job with that. And when you look at the left today with gender issues, antisemetic issues, border issues, etc, it comes down to the lesser of two evils. Politics is messy.
Thanks Anne - I love how you always go right to the heart of the issue; our sin and the Gospel. And I love how you do it in a way that is so subtly snarky yet totally real and approachable. If you were Southern, I can hear you saying "well bless your heart" while dishing out a much needed and incredibly pointed case of verbal whoopass.
As for voting, my God, do people actually think there is a sinless candidate??? David - murderer and adulterer - yet a man after God's own heart??? Moses - murderer and prideful. Abraham - liar and coward. I could go on; point is, there are no perfect people!!! At least Trump acknowledges God; and the Republicans, as vile as they are, have not thrown God out of their platform! What are these people thinking??? We only have one Messiah, and he isn't in politics.
Lastly, your cat is suffering from end stage cattism, (she's dying). My mother and several friends have had that same situation and the only way to stop it, I'm sorry to say, is to help your Lucy walk the rainbow bridge. If this is the beginning, it's only going to get worse. I understand that is a tough decision. But if you don't want your entire house to stink to heaven like cat piss for the next three-five years, (I don't exaggerate, because she will find innovative and horrifying places to go to make sure she is not forgotten), there is no other solution. Unless of course, you want to put a diaper on her. I wish you the best.
Another commenter suggested Kitty Downers. Interesting alternative....no idea if it helps. All cats, when getting closer to death, do this.
Aww. I also have a Grandma cat. I offer three ideas that worked for me, with no guarantee for efficacy outside Oregon :). 1) I set her up in my sewing/utility room, free from stress. A sort of palatial crate. She really did not want company other than me. 2) started calming probiotics I got on Amazon, “Purina Pro Plan Calming Care”and 3) used herbal “no spraying” spray, also from Amazon, “Nature’s Miracle, No More Spraying.” Maybe she is just stressed :)
The Evangelicals for Harris website apparently was prepared in support of President Biden's reelection. The abortion section is found under "On the Issues," "Compassion for Families," and "Overturning Roe, Miscarriages, and IVF: Extremism Versus Compassion." It begins, "Since Mr. Trump's Supreme Court Justices overturned Roe v. Wade, our country has been plunged into chaos."
They also state, "As a devout Catholic, Joe Biden personally doesn't like abortion."