Strange times. A profane Trump could actually help evangelicals advance their political agenda more than a devout one.
But at what cost? E Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 7, 2016, at 15:26, BILROJ via Centroids: The Center of the Radical > Centrist Community <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > Trump's religious dealmaking pays dividends > Katie Glueck ("Politico," December 7, 2016) > Nine days before the election, Donald Trump was backstage at a rally in > Warren, Michigan, listening to a fiery South Carolina preacher-turned-top > surrogate prayerfully predicting victory. > > After pastor Mark Burns finished relaying religiously hued reassurances in a > private conversation ahead of Trump’s speech, the then-candidate turned to > Burns’ wife and offered his own, classically Trumpian expression of faith: He > handed her a crucifix necklace made, in typical Trump style, of gold. > > “We don’t need a religious president,” said Burns, who was touched by the > gift and recounted the story in a recent interview. “We need a president who > can build relationships with people.” > > And for the New York businessman who prides himself on deal-making aptitude, > building relationships — often by making policy promises that go well beyond > what previous, more traditionally conservative candidates have pledged — has > defined his outreach to the network of previously wary Christian leaders who > helped him win the presidency. And now, that transactional cycle seems likely > to shape his White House agenda on issues of interest to the religious right. > > It’s a strikingly different approach from that of the most recent Republican > president, George W. Bush, himself a born-again Christian who wore his faith > on his sleeve and communicated about religion far more fluently than Trump > does. > > But as much as religious conservative leaders respected Bush’s personal > evangelical bona fides, they say that Trump — a man who has struggled to > articulate his faith principles and is unapologetic about his tabloid-worthy > personal life — has made more concrete commitments. They range from his > pledge to appoint only Supreme Court justices who oppose abortion rights — a > commitment Bush wouldn’t make — to his vow to defund Planned Parenthood. > > Trump offered those promises as he sought to shore up more support from the > evangelical community during the campaign, and it worked: He ultimately won > the support of nearly every politically prominent Christian leader and landed > 81 percent of the evangelical vote, a higher percentage than Bush netted in > 2004. > > “I think that he understood that his best and likely only chance to win the > nomination and ultimately the presidency was to compete for and win the > support of voters of faith,” said Ralph Reed, chairman of the Faith and > Freedom Coalition, who says he considers Trump a friend. > > As Trump heads to the White House, the leaders who helped guide his policy > promises, lending him credibility with evangelical voters in the process, say > he is still keeping them in his orbit as the transition process unfolds, > aware of the role their community played in getting him to the presidency in > the first place. > > The first sign that these leaders will continue to have influence after > helping him win: He is keeping intact his evangelical advisory board, > according to several members of the group, who say that there continues to be > a weekly conference call, facilitated by Pam Pryor, a member of Trump’s > transition team with a background in conservative politics, including a stint > with Sarah Palin. She was not made available for an interview, and the Trump > transition team didn’t respond to detailed requests for comment. > > “Mr. Trump evidently told his staff he wanted to keep the advisory board > intact, he wanted us to continue to meet, to give him advice, and I will tell > you, I have been surprised at the level to which the transition team has > solicited our input on personnel,” said Richard Land, a longtime leader in > Southern Baptist politics, who said top Trump aide Kellyanne Conway has also > checked in with the group since the election. > > Members of the board are already making plans to be in Washington for the > National Prayer Breakfast, slated for Feb. 2 — less than two weeks after > Trump’s inauguration, and likely the first high-profile faith event of > Trump’s presidency. There are discussions underway for the board to meet in > person in Washington. And they have already been asked by the transition team > to provide names for key slots in the administration, including for > faith-based offices. > > “I will say, having been involved with administrations from Reagan’s forward, > this is the most solicitous that any incoming administration has been for > input from evangelicals concerning personnel decisions that I’ve > experienced,” Land said, going on to add, “It’s come from Pam’s office, and > she has said, ‘He’s very grateful for the faith community, he wants your > input.’ That didn’t even happen under George W. Bush. They were willing to > take our recommendations, but they didn’t actively solicit them three times > before inauguration.” > > What Trump himself believes, and how he will practice, is a more open > question, and one he doesn’t spend much time addressing publicly — and while > his evangelical advisers hope he goes to church, they aren’t stressing the > issue right now. > > Trump has attended church since the election, making a stop at a Presbyterian > church in Bedminster, New Jersey, near Trump National Golf Club, late last > month. Trump is a Presbyterian, and speculation is already underway over > whether, and where, he might go to church regularly in Washington. > > He has not yet reached out to National Presbyterian Church, which has a rich > political history — Ronald Reagan attended services there, Dwight D. > Eisenhower laid a cornerstone there — though the Rev. David Renwick, the > senior pastor there, said that while the congregation is politically diverse, > theologically the church would align well with the views of many of the > conservative members of Trump’s evangelical advisory board. > > Marble Collegiate Church, the Manhattan church Trump’s family attended > growing up, was more progressive — and Norman Vincent Peale, its pastor for > more than 50 years, embraced the same transactional approach Trump has > applied to his business, political and religiously political dealings alike, > said Gwenda Blair, a prominent biographer of the Trump family. > > “I think Norman Vincent Peale is the definition of a kind of transactional > religion where it’s all about getting ahead,” said Blair, who has also > written about Peale’s effect on the Trumps. > > Trump, though no longer a member of Marble Collegiate Church, has repeatedly > pointed to Peale — who died in 1993 — as an important part of his spiritual > life. > > “Norman Vincent Peale’s message was, do whatever it takes to be successful, > everything is transactional,” Blair said. “Trump, in more recent times, his > appearing in public and holding a Bible and very occasionally saying he’s a > man of faith and a churchgoer… it’s been expedient. It may be true, but those > have certainly been statements that have been presented pretty transparently, > in an expedient way. Everything from obvious unfamiliarity with the Bible to > deploying these [displays of faith] only in circumstances considered to be > advantageous … only when appearing in front of an audience where that would > be especially useful.” > > Members of the evangelical advisory board certainly don’t question Trump’s > faith, but they tend to be more voluble in describing his policy promises > than in the particulars of what he believes. And to them, that’s what matters > most. > > “I’ve discovered over the last 18 months that President-elect Trump’s faith > is very important to him but is also very personal with him, which is why I > don’t discuss it publicly,” said Robert Jeffress, the pastor at First Baptist > Church in Dallas and another member of Trump’s advisory board. “Like many > faith leaders, I’m very encouraged by President-elect Trump’s strong > commitment to protecting the religious liberties of Christians, as well as > people of all faiths.” > > Trump has had deeper conversations about his faith with retired neurosurgeon > Ben Carson, his pick to head the Department of Housing and Urban Development, > sources say (Carson wasn’t available for an interview). But aside from Peale, > the other major spiritual influence most frequently cited has been Paula > White, a televangelist Trump discovered when he saw her on television. She > has been associated with “prosperity gospel,” a controversial doctrine that > echoes the transactional nature of Peale’s preaching in emphasizing the > belief that God wants people to be successful — and, in the case of > prosperity gospel, specifically, rich. > > Members of Trump’s evangelical advisory board pointed to White, both during > the campaign and recently, when asked about his religious influences. She is > also on the council. > > “God is not new to Mr. Trump,” she said in an interview with POLITICO over > the summer (she wasn’t reachable for a follow-up conversation this week), as > she also distanced herself from the “prosperity gospel” label. “He absolutely > has a heart and a hunger and a relationship with God.” > > Still, publicly, Trump has certainly struggled to express what that > relationship looks like. One of his first major perceived gaffes, in the eyes > of evangelical leaders, came in the summer of 2015, when at a Christian > confab in Iowa he said he had never asked God for forgiveness. At the > beginning of this year, he botched the pronunciation of a key Bible verse. > > And during a call with his evangelical advisory council, he drew rebukes from > members of the board when he got transactional — about going to heaven. > > “He said, ‘the only way I’m going to get to heaven is by repealing the > Johnson amendment,’” which restricts tax-exempt churches from engaging in > political activity, Land recalled. “Immediately, one of our people on the > call said, ‘No, sir, the only way you’re going to get to heaven is by > trusting Jesus Christ as your personal savior.’ Mr. Trump said, ‘Thank you > for reminding me.’” > > -- > -- > Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community > <[email protected]> > Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism > Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org > > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community" group. 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