NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Former President Donald Trump vowed to use a second term in the White House to defend Christian values and even suggested he would protect the faith’s central iconography, warning late Thursday a congress of religious broadcasters that the left wants to “demolish the crosses”.
“Remember, every communist regime throughout history has tried to eradicate churches, just as every fascist regime has tried to co-opt and control them,” Trump told hundreds of enthusiastic attendees at the National Religious Broadcasters International Christian Media Convention in Nashville. . “And in the United States, the radical left is trying to do both. »
LEARN MORE: Some Republicans express doubts about Alabama’s IVF decision. Democrats see opportunity
“They want to tear down the crosses where they can and cover them with social justice flags,” Trump added. “But no one will touch the cross of Christ under the Trump administration, I swear.”
Trump’s comments reflect his embrace of Christian nationalism, a widely held belief among conservative evangelicals who say the founders of the United States intended the country to be a Christian nation. Some proponents believe that the U.S. Constitution was inspired by God and that the federal government should declare the United States a Christian nation, advocate Christian values, or stop enforcing separation of church and state.
Trump is favored in a Republican primary where the once-crowded field has narrowed to him and his former United Nations ambassador, Nikki Haley. The Christian media rally, where sponsors handed out free red and white baseball caps emblazoned with “Make America Pray Again,” was extremely friendly territory for the former president, whose speech often felt more like a rally than ‘to a speech given at a convention.
“The left is trying to shame Christians,” Trump said. “They are trying to shame us. I am a very proud Christian.
Trump repeatedly roused the crowd and frequently defended his record on abortion, including appointing three conservative justices to the Supreme Court who helped overturn the Roe v. United States ruling. Wade. But he notably did not mention the Alabama Supreme Court ruling that prompted providers to halt in vitro fertilization after judges ruled that frozen embryos could be considered children under the law of State.
President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign released a blank statement on the issue Thursday evening, wryly calling attention to Trump’s lack of response to the “Alabama IVF decision for which he is responsible.”
Instead, Trump used his speech to boast that he had used his first term to do “more to defend religious freedom than any administration in history.”
“The enthusiasm for this November election is much greater than it was in 2016 or 2020,” he said. “Much bigger, it’s not even a contest.”
Tennessee holds its primaries on Super Tuesday, March 5, when many states across the country are voting and could bring Trump on the verge of claiming the Republican nomination.
Some religious leaders were initially hesitant to support the multi-divorced Trump when he first ran for president in 2016, but they are now part of his mostly solidly loyal “Make America Great Again” base. .
This is despite a personal history that has only become more turbulent in recent years, including Trump’s indictment in New York for secretly paying money to a porn actress in an attempt to suppress an extramarital affair.
“When he came on the scene, people were skeptical,” said Troy Miller, president and CEO of National Religious Broadcasters. “But I think as they’ve learned more and listened to Donald Trump speak, the one thing I hear from people all the time… is that they have really the impression that Donald Trump understands them and that’s the biggest connection that people make is: “He’s a guy in politics who understands us, who understands us, who doesn’t talk like he was an elitist and doesn’t look down on us.
