Would President Pence be “better” or worse than Donald Trump? That’s a fair question. A quick Google search will give you a number of people who think he would be better. And a number who think otherwise. Let’s talk about this. Better is a relative term and, given the low bar set by Trump, it is an easy goal to achieve depending on how you define “better.” Pence would definitely bring far less drama and volatility to the office. He would... Read more
Seven years ago I received an email. A day later I wrote: People he loved and respected told him he was making an evil choice. He didn’t see it as a choice. He had wished for years it was a choice but he was being honest and being who he was. At 17 he told the world he was a gay man. His family “disowned” him. Some people, mostly from his old church, “unfriended” him where it really matters: in real... Read more
Led by people like Franklin Graham, who has compared Planned Parenthood to Nazi death camps, conservative Christians insist that abortion is a political “make or break” issue. Graham has even “quit” the Republican Party over the issue. Abortion is a frequently cited reason for Evangelical support of Trump during the last presidential campaign. But the reality is that abortion is a playing piece in their lifestyle choice. Like their boasts about the importance of “spreading the gospel” most conservative Christians also make... Read more
Big Talk, No (Real) Action. How often has it happened? You are in a conversation with a conservative Christian about war, poverty, hungry children, the economy, or baseball and suddenly the topic-changing trump-card of abortion is played. It is a way, used masterfully over the years, to distract from any uncomfortable subject. I cannot tell you the number of times a conversation, discussion, or debate has been hijacked for a place on the moral high-ground that many Christians believe abortion... Read more
With the celebration of Easter just past it might be a good time to assess how Donald Trump is working with and for Christians considering their overwhelming support for him. Trump is approaching three months in office and so it is not unreasonable to see where he has succeeded and failed. During the election we were told by many Christian leaders that we should discard Trump’s history of bragging about his sexual affairs, his cheating on at least two of his wives,... Read more
For years I have said that people like Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh, Alex Jones, and many others are simply “performance artists” who do not really believe what they say but know they can make money duping people. Outrage and sordid tales of secret conspiracies get listeners, viewers, clicks, and most importantly – money. Well now we have Alex Jones in the midst of a divorce. His wife calls him “unstable” and “violent” based on what he has said on his radio... Read more
A couple months ago Pence and Ryan were telling us there would be no “deportation force.” Time after time they insisted that, in the words of Paul Ryan (R-Galt’s Gulch): “Everybody thinks there’s some deportation force that’s being assembled. That’s not happening.” He also added: “I’m here to tell you, in Congress, it’s not happening.” But they lied. According to a Department of Homeland Security report plans are being made for just such a force. The report details plans for assembling the... Read more
During the presidential campaign I was assured repeatedly by people supporting Trump, especially Christians, that he would not be prone to use the military. He would not repeat the mistakes of Bush and the neocons and rush to war and military intervention except where America was threatened. Of Trump it was said and repeated in various forms that: “The ostensibly more reckless, infantile, inexperienced and bombastic candidate may actually be more mature, level-headed and reasonable on foreign policy than his... Read more
Republicans have consistently said (when Obama was president) that the president needed authorization for attacks like the one carried out against Syria by the Trump administration unless there was a direct threat to the United States. And they were right! Surprise! Today there is no direct threat to the United States in Syria. But may Republicans are cheering the military attack on Syria. What changed? When Assad used sarin gas in 2013 he killed almost 1500 civilians (over 400 children). This attack killed 85. Trump insisted... Read more
The breaking news is that Republicans have failed to get enough votes to end cloture, and to force a vote on Gorsuch, Trump’s Supreme Court nominee. Under the constitution, the president can nominate a member to the Supreme Court, and the Senate is tasked with approving those picks. In this case, by a vote of 55 to 44, the Senate has functionally rejected his pick. This is not unheard of. President Bush was forced to withdraw one of his picks... Read more
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