Talking Points Memo recently considered the response of the “Christian” Right to the FBI’s execution of a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago.The article described a “smorgasbord of persecution complexes, whataboutism, conspiracy theories, lies, and misinformation about law enforcement and the judicial process.”
The Christian right and its GOP allies are counting on their base consuming a steady diet of these radio shows, podcasts, social media posts, and email blasts, tuning out any coverage that conflicts with their image of Trump as both a virile hero and a victim besieged by radical leftists at the FBI. For them, God anointed Trump, choosing an “unlikely” leader to restore Christian America. It is precisely because Trump is singularly capable of resurrecting the Christian nation, this thinking goes, that the radical leftists of the deep state want to bring him down.
For those of us who remain residents of the reality-based community, the belief that any God worth worshipping would choose Donald Trump to “resurrect” anything is utterly gobsmacking. Yet the article went on to quote prominent figures of the Christian Right–Tony Perkins, who runs the Family Research Council and Franklin Graham, son of Billy– ranting about the perfidy of the FBI. (Graham invoked the 1992 standoff at Ruby Ridge, and the conspiracy theory, evidently pervasive in right-wing circles, that “funding in the Inflation Reduction Act to boost collection of taxes owed by the wealthy was “a step in weaponizing the IRS to act against anyone voicing dissent against the government.)
If the Talking Points Memo report wasn’t sufficiently horrifying, a recent description of Trump supporters in David French’s newsletter certainly was. (French, by the way, is a conservative.)
French begins by differentiating between Republicans who voted for Trump in 2016 and those who currently support him. He says that voters in 2016 were populist (a nicer word than racist…) but that today’s case for Trump is different– and even more harmful for American politics
Here’s the new narrative—and I have no doubt that a number of readers have heard all or much of it from their MAGA friends and family members—goes something like this:
The Trump presidency exposed the true evil of the left. They persecuted Trump more than any other president in history. First, there was the Russia hoax, then the impeachment hoax, then they shut down the economy and schools to destroy Trump; they shut down churches to destroy the Church. They burned cities. They hollowed out our police forces. They were tyrants. They forced us to wear masks that didn’t work and to take an experimental vaccine that has killed tens of thousands of vulnerable Americans.
They hated Trump because Trump was God’s anointed leader to save the nation, and it’s no surprise that the forces of hell came against him.
Even then, they knew they couldn’t beat him. So they changed election rules. Dead people voted. Thousands of “mules” stuffed the ballot boxes, and then they tried to stop Trump from investigating fraud. And if anyone’s to blame for January 6, it’s Nancy Pelosi for leaving the Capitol unguarded. They just let people walk in, and now they’re holding political prisoners in solitary confinement. Second impeachment was a joke, another hoax. But still they can’t keep Trump down. Joe Biden is senile. He can barely walk or talk. Trump is coming back, and they know it, so they’re attacking him again.
The inescapable fact that there are millions of Americans who actually subscribe to this loony-tunes view is nothing short of terrifying. But as French says, once you become aware of this narrative, you see evidence of it is everywhere. He points to wild claims that 44 percent of pregnant women in the Pfizer COVID-vaccine trial miscarried; accusations that a Pennsylvania Senate candidate is “satanic;” and a new book by a right-wing radio host arguing that the COVID lockdowns and other public-health measures were “the worst evil in our history” and the “worst oppression in global history since the Third Reich.”
Meanwhile, well-meaning liberals urge Red and Blue Americans to engage in civil discourse. Really? The likelihood of having a respectful discussion with people who hold such views is somewhere between zero and “are you kidding?”
French says there are tens of millions of Republicans who don’t hold these views (or at least don’t hold them as intensely), but as he points out, those who do hold them intensely are reliable Republican primary voters.
This changes what it can mean to tack right in the primary and then move to the center for the general. The story above is so dire and so radical that tacking right often precludes moving left. Where do you go after you’ve declared the election stolen or after you’ve declared that your opponents are pure evil?
And where do the rest of us go?
Any TRUE Christian knows that Donald J. Trump is not the “anointed/chosen one”. He has sucked up to the devil one too many times, stealing government papers from the people of the United States of America. He needs to go to Satan.
We can not talk with them. We can not change them. We can defeat them at the polls. And we MUST defeat them at the polls. This year and again in 2024.
Let’s be clear what we are advocating and voting for with far greater energy than what we advocate and vote against. Who are the heroes and heroines of what we are for? Societies celebrate their heroes in different ways and at different levels. For someone to be considered a hero, there are critical qualities they must fulfill. They must be selfless, society minded, and expect no benefit. No matter how great a hero might look, politics are crucial when determining who the national heroes will be.
I used to think, as an arrogant young open-minded liberal, that all I’d have to do is wait for the old, white conservatives to die off to see meaningful change in this country. Man, was I wrong! I’ve seen almost as many (very) young MAGA-heads as I have elderly, and it scares the excrement out of me. I honestly don’t know where we went so wrong, and I can’t imagine what the rest of my years will be like, especially if that mad man is elected again in 2024.
I consider the media and politicians as the entry point to the mud pit. There are no rational discussions about anything coming from this level unless you enjoy getting muddy.
If you’re stuck at that level of consciousness, I’ll say a prayer for you and walk on.
Coming from a higher level, Vladimir Putin just told leaders of about 20 countries that the days of US hegemony are over.
I agree with him, so what does that mean for the USA?
One of the 10 commandments states Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain. Saying any political candidate was chosen by God violates that commandment, especially one who is the polar opposite of the Christ as trump is.
Of all things! TODAY is the day that marked the conclusion of the Council of Nicaea in 325 which set forth most of the basic doctrines of Christianity!
(I used it for my “This Day in History” post on Facebook! (I usually introduce that with some remarks about it. I also posted the link to YOUR essay in the comments section, Dr. Kennedy! Thank you!)
Conversations with Republicans are requisite.
When anyone tries to push someone into a different belief, they will only get pushback. It is a natural human tendency to defend what one believes.
If one engages them as a partisan – trying to change their minds with facts and pleas – they will push back.
But being the manifestation of love to them, you can listen to what they consider facts and what their misinformed beliefs are. When they feel heard, you can then ask their opinion about some bit of reality, nudging them ever so slightly toward reality. And then nudge them again the next time, because you haven’t alienated them. Over time, someday they may arrive at a suspicion of the actual truth.
Some Republicans are actually reasonable and known to their fellows. If you can make these people feel comfortable speaking about reality, they may influence their fellows.
Personally; I am sick of hearing about “God” inspired political White Nationalist destruction under Trump’s leadership. Actually I sick of hearing about “God” being praised for all that is “good” when he/she/it must also be blamed for all that is “wrong” in this world today. The Bible is not a textbook of learning but a collection of man’s viewpoints of a few facts but woven into fables and fairy tales to excuse their actions as “God” inspired. When will man begin to accept their blame as well as their approval for conditions brought about by them? We can find more truths in well written historical novels by our favorite authors. Parallels of AIDS, ebola and Covid-19 can be found in Stephen King’s novel “The Stand” is a good example of Pandemics and our own government.
So, Todd, Putin just said that while at the same time he is trying to obliterate Ukraine as a nation that existed as a kingdom before Russia. And one of his closest advisors, whose daughter was just liquefied by a car bomb of mysterious origins, held the strong belief that it is Russia’s destiny that it rule over all of Eurasia. So, that’s pretty rich coming from Vlad.
I agree that the days of US Hegemony are waning but certainly not over. As long as countries like Russia, China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Pakistan, India and others seek to dominate their neighbors politically, militarily and economically, the US has little choice but to stay in the game. US oligarchs will not stand for the catastrophic impact of isolationism on access to cheap offshore labor and lax human rights and environmental standards, or on exports and share prices.
Mea culpa; as often as I have read “The Stand”, how could I omit the religious basis of the book of good against evil with Randall Flagg the anti-Christ and Mother Abigail, a 106 year old Black woman as the Godlike source of good.
Over the past forty years the oligarchs have worked tirelessly to create both state and federal governments that exist to only serve their interests. While grudgingly allowing crumbs of assistance to be offered to the poor masses they continuously create nonprofit Dark Money organizations that lobby members of congress to reduce their tax liabilities and subsidize their businesses/investments with tax dollars paid by workers in the poor and middle class. Reagan’s supply side trickle down BS was actually a scheme to take money from the middle class to swiftly move it to the wealthy oligarchs. For every penny the oligarchs spend on the media sources that they own and control (including radio and podcast hosts) they receive thousands of dollars back in profits.
They have successfully destroyed the formerly strong middle class and their greed appears to have no limits. Respected economists have stated that the Robber Barron gilded age pales in comparison to our current oligarch controlled economy. As long as millions of Americans choose to believe the oligarch media’s lies we will continue on our downward spiral. I still believe it will take some form of a violent revolution to turn things around. By then we most likely will have handed our world power over to China.
For those of you who keep stating that we must vote only for Democrats, please be aware that there is an extreme shortage of Democrats running for office that people can vote for. Gerrymandering in Indiana has made it a non-starter for Democrats to spend time and money on campaigns they have no chance of winning. Gerrymandering in Indiana is the reason we rank in the lowest 10% of voter turnout in the country. Voters know that their vote actually won’t count.
When the ballot is completely dominated by republicans there is no reason to waste time voting.
Christopher may be correct for those with patience, but that is the long game. The short game is to vote them out – overwhelmingly.
The real evils are the twins that abet the destruction of this country, the Youngkins who pretend to be moderate and them succumb to Trumptism, and the “rational” Republicans who will still vote “R” because that can’t abandon the party, no matter who is on the ballot.
What some don’t want to see is that the Liz Cheneys, as noble as they are in not crossing the line, aiding in bringing the GOP right up to the line she won’t cross. It’s like Henry II saying they went too far, after uttering “Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest”.
Let’s not forget that David French and the reasonable Republicans (best band name I’ve heard recently!) will still fall in line and vote Trump if he wins the primary. Oh, 12 of them will vote for someone else in the primary, but when it comes time for the general – Republicans fall in line fast and the “good” Republicans will be no different.
As I see it, one problem lies at the feet of other Christians, who have allowed the evangelicals to claim God. They have taken ownership of something they call Christianity, as all the while they do all of the things that Christ railed against. They are the world’s worst hypocrites.
Nancy,
Good points across the board. Humans who cling to their fantasies have been around since, probably, before recorded history. They cling because they’ve been told to cling to them. It’s what the “leaders” of ancient tribes did to control their populations. Then, with the invention of agriculture, massive surpluses of food were created. Guess what. The “priests” were put in charge of the surplus and doled out at their whims. So, is it any wonder that today’s “priests” are the corporate moguls? The politicians are controlled by the those “priests”. Religion has to go along to keep their hands in the game of money collecting. This is the reality of “made in God’s image.”
BTW, I saw where we’re at the place where these top “priests'” incomes are over 400% greater than working class wages. The past threshold for revolution was about 250%. We’re long overdue. I think it’s taking longer to destroy the middle class than the moguls expected. But the pace is accelerating.
All the information needed to live a civically productive life here is readily available but mixed in with every type of misinformation imaginable: entertainment, advertising, political propaganda, religious propaganda, and cultural propaganda. It’s a tsunami all brought to us by those with a need to impose what they value on the rest of us to save our immortal souls, take our money or to make their world our world.
It takes a great deal of intellectual sorting out and filtering and real research to separate the wheat from the chaff.
Some are able and willing to do that work and some would rather follow the most comfortable path for themselves.
No one can be reasoned out of a belief they did not reason themselves into. ~ Jonathan Swift
Abrahamic religions have always been a tool of authoritarian leaders. How else would they get the peasants to behave themselves? Bread and circuses, the Romans said, but they forgot to mention the temples.
Constantine J. Trump is just doing what emperors do.
One can not discuss/argue with utter fools, or the utterly fooled.
Religion seems capable of bringing out the worst of us, wanting to live in a fairy tale world that has ultimate answers to ultimately unanswerable questions.
” As long as countries like Russia, China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Pakistan, India ”
Om goodness. They’re so scary. Russia is bad. They won WWII. Iran should have accepted their place. Mossadegh was such a threat. China? Hey,the executive-class and Wall St built modern China. Are you enjoying the fruits of that venture via a pension? Turkey? Thanksgiving? Pakistan an ally in the War On Terrorism? Osama’s hideout? India? India is the gift that will keep on giving.
Add Mexico to the list against current American exceptionalism. There’s a good chance the petro in “one” of your automobiles (climate change reference) is from Mexico.
That’s quite a collection of nations. A powerful group. A group the Biden administration begs whilst upon its knees. When Biden begged MBS for more oil,did Biden feel shame? Was the idiot chagrined? Or is his dementia too far advanced? Is MBS a pariah or fist-bump buddy? The Biden administration is so pathetic. They’re like children lost in the woods. Biden is in over his head,but that’s why he’s got Victoria Nuland,no? She’s using the U.S. for her very own personal battles. Crazy woman. The female Adolf Hitler. She loves death.
The U.S. is the only country with hundreds of military bases across the world. We are so exceptional ,dontcha know? What’s the difference between Joe Biden and Sarah Palin? Palin wasn’t a segregationist. The days of U.S. hegemony are coming to a close. The world will be able to exhale. The US of A is an old whore whose glory days are well over. She’s used up. She’s now fat,wrinkled and full of disease. The Biden administration is nothing more than lipstick on a pig. And cheap,smeared and cancerous lipstick, at that. It’s so appropriate. The perfect metaphor. The U.S. is the cancer on the world.
The aforementioned countries are not attempting takeover of their neighbors. Those countries also represent quite a majority of the population of the world. Of course arrogant Americans will continue to cling to their exceptionalism to the end. You just can’t let go of past glories. You’re living in the past.
Americans play checkers while the world plays chess. The fall of Ukraine will be the last gasp American exceptionalism. Ukraine = the last American Caucasian orgasm. It will be a puny orgasm. Ukraine (a white-trash nation) should be erased. Until the U.S. can find a nice enclave for Zelenskyy with unlimited access to cocaine (to continue his use) the Russian Military Police Action will continue…..Until Europe’s version of Trump will abscond under ignominious circumstances,his country will continue to bombed….As it should. It’s going to be cold this winter in Europe.
This November the backlash against the Dim-ocrats will be phenomenal. Oh,Fuck Ukraine.
Franklin Graham was mentioned in Sheila’s blog post today. This morning I watched about three minutes of either GMA or TODAY and then a commercial came on. I had already muted the sound. Franklin Graham was pitching some phone number to call for prayers. Even with the sound muted I had to laugh as I wondered how quickly the people that call for prayers will be asked to contribute money to his bogus organization created just to rob the gullible people he knows are still out there.
Vern – I think the income/wealth divide revolution is being delayed by the media sources that are lying to those who are choosing to have their biases confirmed.
Nancy – kudos for not wasting time or money on DEMs who can’t possibly win due to gerrymandering. BUT…while you may not be able to vote for them, there are DEMS across the country in US Senate and House races who could use your support (maybe you have friends or relatives there) and/or some money.
Dirk, I was here to post a similar sentiment: see Rusty Bowers. So, I’ll just back you up. I agree, even the ones that recognize the crazy and problematic nature of the GOP, will still vote Republican down the line when the time comes.
So, who’s more awful? Is it the horde of ignorant, racist, brainwashed cult members following their leader? Or is it the knowledgeable ones who _choose_ to vote for Trump and the GOP anyway?
You know what I find fascinating?
Everyone absolutely positively knows the Bible is just a bunch of stories.!?!?.
But then the Magna Carta is revered, the English Bill of Rights is revered, the French declarations on the rights of man and citizen is revered, the Constitution and Bill of Rights is revered, the Emancipation Proclamation is revered!
How many of these documents are mythical? Almost all were written centuries ago!
How many are trustworthy? What do we know about all of those who authored these documents? What was the reasoning behind these documents? But alas, we base a lot of our societal values on these documents.
The Bible, tells us to love God and love your neighbor! It also says to love your enemy! In many of the later documents, a lot of their content is based on scriptural authorship.
The scriptures actually tell us to take care of the widows, the orphans, the poor, the infirmed, it also has provisions for punishing chronic liars, it also has provisions to respect your parents, husbands respecting their wives and vice versa, and obeying the superior authorities which are those in government and paying your taxes. Christians are not supposed to kill one another, but, they do so in droves!
Christians are supposed to live by the fruitage of the spirit! Galatians 5:22, 23.
But instead, these fake Christians today have embraced what is called works of the flesh! Galatians 5:19 – 21.
One is not compatible with the other! So, it really is not hard to refute what they claim or what they are saying about their particular religious beliefs. They also are not to force their beliefs down anyone else’s throat.
Every human is a free moral agent, free to make their own decisions regardless of what anybody else has to say. If you don’t agree with someone’s decision, then don’t live by that particular decision. You follow what you believe is the appropriate conduct.
D
A properly trained conscience will steer anyone in the right direction. The apostle Paul also said in Romans, people of the Nations are a law unto themselves. In other words, they’re aware of certain conduct that is inappropriate.
Taking your neighbor’s wife? Stealing your neighbors money or looting their house? Killing / murdering your neighbor? Lying, deceit, elicit activities? A properly trained conscience will tell you these things are wrong, you don’t really have to read it in a book, because the thought of it tends to seem and should seem wrong!
Absolutely know those that are deceitful, and want to deceive their so-called flocks into believing something that is unconscionable, really against all conscience, these are not Christians, they don’t follow Christ! Therefore, they should not be considered a religion and not given a pass on paying their taxes and being subservient to the superior authorities! Romans the 13th chapter!…
Everyone has the opportunity to refute what these individuals claim, but, nobody wants to be bothered! I do, I do it all the time! I believe it’s the appropriate thing to do. And what’s extremely satisfying, is that they have no answers to the questions asked.
So, they continue on following what 2nd Thessalonians 2:3-7 calls the “Man of Lawlessness!”
Those who cast aspersions are no better than those causing tumult in the Government.
A government who’s laws and conduct has been fashioned after scripture, long before even the Magna Carta.
Of course, mankind can’t even abide by their own writings, writings that have been authored by governments. Can mankind guide his own steps guide his own steps?
Proverbs 28:26 states, whoever trusts in his own heart is stupid, but the one who walks in wisdom will escape.
Jeremiah 17:9 reads the heart is more treacherous than anything else and is desperate. Who can know it?
Psalm 17:5 reads; King David says about his god, “let my steps stay on your tracks, so that my feet will not stumble.
The Psalmist also States in Psalm 18:36; “you widen the path for my footsteps, my feet will not slip.”
Of course David did slip, he took another man’s wife and had that woman’s husband killed. And, he paid the penalty for it!
It isn’t hard to refute followers of the man of lawlessness, but you have to be willing to do it and not just listen to someone else who has an agenda!
I am currently preparing 300 hand-written postcards to send out to Democratic voters in Nevada and North Carolina to ask them to vote in the mid-term election.
What are you doing to beat the cult of Trump?
Every good lie has a kernel of truth: “that “funding in the Inflation Reduction Act to boost collection of taxes owed by the wealthy” I am pretty sure that is absolutely true. At least he didn’t tell them that “87,000 new agents (<- the true part) armed with AR-15s are coming for the middle class."
The hard core Republican base may be a problem, but when every Indiana Republican congressman gets an opportunity to express an opinion, these guys are marching right along with their base. Today when one of the news stations asked about the Student Loan Forgiveness program, these guys all had sound bites about Give-away's, inflation, etc… I would not be surprised to find out from a Republican politician this new program may cause herpes.
Having God's blessing just makes the lies easier to swallow for some people.
WADR – Kathy, I admire your work. But, if the cards are going to regular DEM voters, they are unlikely to make any difference. The group you are working for needs to send cards to registered DEMs who don’t always vote.
300 cards?
Wow!
You think that will make a difference?
I would venture to say almost all of them will end up in the trash.
There was a time I would have been writing checks to specific candidates, it was such a waste, I should have just burned it in my backyard. At least it would have created a little bit of heat on a cold night.
Since the ’90s, things have been going down the toilet faster and faster. Ronald the huckster Reagan really kicked things off in the ’80s, but it really got rolling later on.
It’s gotten worse and worse and worse. So, where were you?
Alexander Solzhenitsyn warned us of the over reach of those in control. Never should a political opponent be harassed by the government. Its easy to see the political fall out of the FBI being politicized as memos from Biden according whistblowers such as John Solomon and even Andrew MCCabe are making it clear that the former President under NARA Act is in the clear. Peter Strozk is actually still part of the FBI and the part of the cover up media of CNN and MSNBC. Connecting the dots of government abuse over the history from the FBI and politicians claiming Martin Luther King was a communist and a spy goes way back.
And any one of us who thinks that all the classified/top secret materials from M-A-L (Meg-a-Lardo) have been surrendered to the search also believes in the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny. I’d bet that the scanners and printers were running night and day 24/7 before the search ever began. Then those documents were scattered among the older children with “security clearance” and friends for “safe-keeping”. Ya think?
Lester — They are registered Dems.
John Sorg — Ever hear of The Starfish Story? Here’s a link! https://eventsforchange.wordpress.com/2011/06/05/the-starfish-story-one-step-towards-changing-the-world/
And I have always voted for Dem presidential candidates starting with Senator George McGovern in 1972, the first year I was eligible to vote.
Nice kathy,
Parables are a wonderful way of teaching! Jesus Christ use them all the time. The prodigal son, the vineyard workers, the good samaritan, the good slave and others were a teaching tool many had not heard of before that time. Other parables like the fisher of men, the bird catcher, the sheep and the goats, the wheat and the weeds, and others, made very valid points. The golden rule, another statement that many in history had borrowed from, but the vehicle that contains all of these parables is still disrespected!
After a particularly nasty shooting here, during a violent several days, I spoke to lieutenant Commander Liam of the county sheriff’s department. He was really stressed and visibly upset. So I asked him if I could show him a scripture, he read Romans the 13th chapter verse 1 through 8. He actually started to cry! Then asked if he would be able to show it to his men, so I let him have the bible! He said he never thought something like that would be in the bible. So, yes, there are many tools for teaching, many are called, but very few answer.
Yes according Zuckerberg the FBI censored information regarding Hunter Bidens laptop. The FBI contacted social media and told them to look out for anything regarding the laptop as Russian disinformation. Ron johnson also has had whistleblowers from the FBI back this up. The FBI had the laptop almost a year before the 2020 election and took sides to censor information and refused to do investigations and release that information and then lie to ghe public calling it disinformation.
Yes. Look out for the facts on podcasts and shows.
When another Germany with Nazi leadership rears its head both sides will be there to defeat it. There is no honor in this country… only hostility