As a Southern Baptist, I try
to keep up with the happenings going on within our convention. I am especially
interested when national media features an interview or article from one of
our leaders. I was not surprised to see Dr. Russell Moore, President of the
Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention,
publish an op-ed piece in the New York Times following the Republican
presidential debate that took place last night.
Dr. Moore rightly takes
Evangelicals and social conservatives to task for seemingly abandoning their
stated values and supporting Donald Trump. Moore wisely says, “There’s no
religious test for office, and there shouldn’t be. My Baptist ancestors were
willing to make alliances with the heretical Thomas Jefferson because he
believed in religious liberty. It didn’t matter that they never would have let
him teach Sunday school.”[i]
I think maybe Dr. Moore misses the
point. People, including some misguided evangelicals and social conservatives, are not supporting Trump
because of his rhetoric. A few seem to be supporting him because they agree, that:
a) With huge amounts of money
in national politics, a great many people believe politicians are corrupt.
Trump does in fact have the resources to run a self-funded race without even
the perception of being in the pocket of large donors. Average people care about that.
b) A great many people simply
cannot understand why neither political party addresses illegal immigration. In
the minds of many, laws have been broken and yet nothing is done. Average people care about that.
c) There is no disputing that
American military veterans are poorly cared for once they leave active duty.
This is yet another problem that has persisted under administrations of both
political parties. Average people care about that.
d) Trump knows his life has
unfolded in the public eye and is not trying to hide his past from prying eyes.
Whether true or not, there is a sense of "what you see is what you
get" with Trump that the other candidates have not yet replicated (perhaps
with the exception of Carson and Fiorina). Average people care about that.
Evangelicals have thrown
their support behind candidate after candidate who have disappointed once in
office. The perception that career politicians say one thing on the campaign
trail and govern differently once in office, true or not, has incited anger in
the electorate and frankly folks are fed up. Though Moore is absolutely correct philosophically and biblically, chastising Evangelicals for their
disgust with the current state of politics will not change hearts and minds.
Most Evangelicals I have
spoken with do not consider Trump to be a serious candidate for president.
However, those same folks are pleased that someone, even a man like Trump, has
establishment politicians on their heels. Trump has forced this wide field of
candidates to sharpen their message and address areas of policy that likely
would not have been discussed without his presence in the race and to do so much earlier in this election cycle.
Like many others, I expect Trump’s campaign to
fade as more and more voters begin to pay attention to this election cycle and the field of candidates inevitably narrows. I have found very few Evangelicals who consider Trump their first, second, or even third choice so I doubt strongly they will support him in the primaries next year when they actually step into the voting booth to cast their ballot. Could it be those so-called Evangelicals and social conservatives of which Dr. Moore speaks are anything but what those terms imply? Perhaps, but Dr. Moore is certainly in a better position than I am to make such a judgment.
A word of warning: if Trump is polling at 25-30% support come February, look
out. If America can elect Barak Obama twice to the highest office in the land,
it can certainly elect Donald Trump, maybe twice.
[i]The New York Times. Have Evangelicals Who Support Trump Lost Their Values? Accessed
September 17, 2015. http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/09/17/opinion/have-evangelicals-who-support-trump-lost-their-values.html?_r=0&referrer=