Another Great Moment In Christian Hypocrisy: The American Taliban Lying To Themselves
"He used us.... " The astonishing lack of self-awareness in Evangelicals
(Note: in this piece, I use “Evangelical” and “American Taliban” interchangeably. Also, Mike Pence is an “American hero” like I’m a North Korean spy.)
Once upon a time, as America wandered sinfully in the wilderness, a man came along who Evangelical Christians believed would lead them to the Promised Land- political power, not everlasting salvation.
Did you think the American Taliban has ever cared about the teachings of their Lord Jesus Christ? HELL no; the only thing they’ve ever truly cared about is political power. So they want to pull the levers of power, make the rules, and- most importantly- enforce them.
So when Donald Trump came along, the American Taliban was willing to sacrifice its principles and transgress every moral standard to get their man in the White House. And so they did. And, Praise God, Trump won- even though he actually lost (the popular vote), so the Evangelical community finally had their man in the White House.
Yes, as in, “He lost, and you’re in a cult.”
Of course, Orange Jesus is a man of God in the same way I’m an NFL quarterback, and his only “prayers” usually involved finding new and ever more corrupt ways to enrich himself. Por ejemplo, he turned the Treasury into his piggy bank and the government into his personal property. Even worse, he tried to bribe a foreign government (Ukraine) into doing his bidding before releasing Congressionally-authorized war materiel to them.
Despite four years of clear and blatant corruption and criminality (two impeachments put him in a class by himself), Evangelicals LOVED Donald Trump. He gave them a seat at the table and made their priorities his. They were ecstatic to have “one of their own” in the White House. Except that the only person and the only cause Orange Jesus has ever cared about is Himself.
And he wasn’t “one of their own.” Trump was using the American Taliban, whose leadership was too enamored of their newfound power to see the truth. Over the nearly two years that Mango Mussolini’s been out of power, they’ve seen him at his worst. Perhaps they’ve finally come to grips with the truth that they allowed themselves to be used by an orange-tinted, mentally unbalanced carnie.
Nay, they allowed themselves to be used. It was a conscious decision made willingly and knowingly. Evangelicals aren’t stupid; they went into Trumpism knowing full well what they were doing and what they were getting themselves into. To now claim that they were “used” is laughable.
As Act II comes around, though, Evangelicals are (finally) displaying some well-placed caution.
Evangelical figures who previously supported Donald Trump are backing off now that he’s announced his third bid for the presidency.
“Donald Trump can’t save America,” Mike Evans told The Washington Post. “He can’t even save himself.”
Evans was part of a group of evangelicals who met with Trump at the White House, and at one point gave him an award.
Now, he says he’s done with Trump.
“He used us to win the White House. We had to close our mouths and eyes when he said things that horrified us,” Evans told the newspaper. “I cannot do that anymore.”
Robert Jeffress, one of Trump’s evangelical advisers during the 2016 campaign and a longtime supporter, said he’s not ready to endorse him again.
“The Republican Party is headed toward a civil war that I have no desire or need to be part of,” Jeffress told Newsweek, adding that he would “happily” support Trump again if he wins the nomination.
I have to laugh at the sudden rush of self-awareness the American Taliban seems to be displaying. “He used us to win the White House?” And whose fault is that? Y’all knew EXACTLY what he was about and what he was doing in 2015-16. You saw him in action. You heard his words and his racism, misogyny, and hatred toward those who aren’t White, Conservative, Christian, heterosexual, and male. You weren’t being used; you chose to ignore what was right in front of you because you lusted for power.
How very “Christian” of you.
Yet all y’all were on board with Trump. Despite the truth that he was no more a Christian than a Congressional Medal of Honor winner, y’all held him up as a model Christian. Y’all prayed with and over him and kept your powder dry when he came up with his Muslim ban.
(Who Would Jesus Hate? I’ll leave that to Evangelicals to provide an answer; they’ve had more than their allotted four years to wallow in “Christian” hatred and exclusion.)
What would Jesus have said to all that? You know precisely what He would’ve said. Still, you didn’t care because Donald Trump was President, and you had a seat at the table. Your hypocrisy was sickening yet revealing of what y’all are about.
Jeffress added on Twitter that he still considers Trump “a great friend and our greatest president since Reagan.”
Another onetime faith adviser to Trump, James Robison of Life Outreach International, said in a speech this week that Trump’s ego is getting in the way of the agenda.
“If Mr. Trump can’t stop his little petty issues, how does he expect people to stop major issues?” Robison said, according to The Washington Post.
He said he told Trump: “Sir, you act like a little elementary schoolchild and you shoot yourself in the foot every morning you get up and open your mouth! The more you keep your mouth closed, the more successful you’re gonna be!”
Robison did not say if he was planning to support Trump in 2024.
Another evangelical figure who previously endorsed Trump was even more blunt, with Washington Times columnist Everett Piper writing that Trump cost the GOP big in the midterms and could hurt them even more in two years.
“The take-home of this past week is simple: Donald Trump has to go,” Piper wrote. “If he‘s our nominee in 2024, we will get destroyed.”
Of course, no one can know what will happen in November 2024. That’s still a long way off. Who knows, perhaps we’ll be invaded by Martians, who will turn out to be rabid Right-wingers who are totally behind Trump. Because of that, maybe Orange Jesus will rule until he’s 143 because the aliens will keep him artificially alive. And perhaps he’ll carry out some of the summary executions of dissidents himself.
That scenario’s unrealistic, but it makes as much sense as anything else. For now, though, I love the idea that not only are Evangelicals lukewarm on Trump but so are many on the Far-Right. Rupert Murdoch has said that the Fox News empire won’t get behind him in 2024. So perhaps Trump really will be a fringe candidate once again.
Then again, he was when he descended the Trump Tower escalator in 2015.
If he’s back to where he started, it may prove to be the most incredible opportunity to engage in schadenfreude this country has ever seen. Or the most astonishing political comeback.
I can hardly wait- and I’m hoping for the former. With any luck, he’ll be rotting in a federal lockup in the Oregon Coast Range.
