“Get out and vote. Just this time. You won’t have to do it anymore. Four more years, you know what: it’ll be fixed, it’ll be fine. You won’t have to vote anymore, my beautiful Christians. Get out, you’ve got to get out and vote. In four years, you don’t have to vote again, we’ll have it fixed so good you’re not going to have to vote.”—Donald Trump to evangelicals.
By Jack Bernard, contributing columnist
PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. | Of all the statements that Donald Trump has made, this one above should scare everyone in this nation, regardless of your age, sex, party affiliation, geographic section, race, or religion.
Can’t you see that Donald Trump is announcing he plans to be a dictator? Democracy, under him, would be down the drain, and lost forever. All the pleasures we have as individual citizens would be lost.
Former President Donald Trump is a populist billionaire who was elected due to blue collar discontent. Trump says he will drain the swamp and return our government to the people. But several political commentators have analyzed the 2025 plans put forth by close associates of Trump. They have concluded that Trump wants to take 44,000 jobs currently held by well qualified civil servants… and fill them with right wing political appointees. So much for draining the swamp. He will flood the swamp.
Isn’t it time for populist candidate Trump to embrace real electoral reform that enables the people’s will to be heard (as a true populist by definition must do)? Instead of just preying on “white grievance” and then pretending he supports democracy?
Historically, we were not originally set up to be a true democracy by our Founding Fathers. They had little faith in the average American voter (and restricted voting to white men). Instead, we were founded as a republic that would be dependent on a vestige of the feudal system, the Electoral College. But that can be changed via Constitutional amendment if the bipartisan will is there. Why won’t Trump support letting the people, versus the Electoral College, elect the President?
Further, nearly three-fourths of evangelicals support Trump, says Newsweek. The question is, “Why”?
These evangelicals view Trump as the “vessel.” The best explanation is in The Immoral Majority by Ben Howe, a conservative evangelical. Howe details the way in which evangelicals explain away Trump’s obvious immorality by declaring that he is accomplishing God’s will on earth.
In this view of the evangelical world, Trump can be completely despicable on a personal level. But so long as he is helping God to achieve certain goals, he must be supported. That is simply justifying immorality.
There is a major gap as to what some people believe versus the truth, enabling Donald to prey on the vulnerable. For example, look at the latest controversy about Louisiana requiring the Ten Commandments be posted in every classroom. Trump’s evangelical base is clearly in favor of this move, but doesn’t realize the Constitution states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion…”
From Politico: “Christian nationalists in America believe that the country was founded as a Christian nation and that Christian values should be prioritized throughout government and public life.” These Americans feel that forcing Judeo-Christian commandments onto our children is consistent with our democracy, even though it is directly in opposition to the Constitution. Our nation was NOT founded as a Christian nation, as the Constitution says above.
Trump is preying on evangelicals and the rest of his blue-collar base, telling them whatever they want to hear so long as it helps him. Be warned by Donald Trump himself: if Trump is re-elected, “you may never have to vote again.”
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