Hi Ernie, There's an "agenda" for some, no doubt, but for most I think it might be a fear of extinction in any kind of public place (and maybe more). Right or wrong. To speak of an "agenda", to me, implies intention and I don't think that's what's drove the average evangelical that voted for Mr. Trump. My $0.02 :)
// Lennart Sent from my phone. > On Dec 7, 2016, at 17:33, Centroids <[email protected]> wrote: > > 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. > 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. 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.
