When Trump and MAGA Meet the War Machine

Trump and Putin are scheduled to meet today. I truly hope that a just peace follows. Not because it will bolster Trump’s campaign to win the coveted Nobel Peace Prize. But because peace means no more war and no more death.

Whatever happens, and most experts are not anticipating much, I am not convinced that it matters for the people who care the most: namely, those most affected by war, the men and women of Ukraine and Russia. They seem to be of no concern to those involved in the negotiations.

Challenging the Church to be the Church

If you have followed the work of Determinetruth, including this blog site, our podcasts, and/or YouTube videos, you know that our concern centers on the Church—both encouraging it to follow Christ more fully (I firmly believe that we have lost sight of the Gospel of the kingdom and exchanged it for a variety of things: consequently, while many believe they are following Christ, I fear that Jesus and the Gospel suggest otherwise) and urging it to live and speak prophetically to the world, which primarily manifests itself in sacrificial love for the sake of the other.

Now, some might say that I have been too political. Most, however, believe that I have not been political enough. If this is the case, then perhaps I have navigated the political scene “just right,” as Goldilocks might say.

It should be noted that I have been critical of both Biden and Trump (my blogs have only been active during these two presidencies; otherwise, I would have been happy to speak out against Obama, Bush, Clinton, Bush Sr., Reagan, and Carter . . . you get the point).

My purpose has never been partisan (I have no party affiliation). Instead, it has been to confront policies that endorse, encourage, or actively promote injustice and to call the Church to oppose them while actively encouraging our officials to do better.

Again and again, I’ve said that Christians are not critical enough of their own political leaders. Too many are wedded to their political parties and blind to the adverse effects of their policies.

But the Church is called to be a prophetic voice—speaking the truth in love–to our government.

NB: This is appropriate because we live in a democratic republic and bear the civic responsibility to advocate for just causes.

War is bad

One of my consistent concerns is the US proclivity to engage in war. Wars create injustice.

NB: If someone responds here that there are times nations must go to war, they are missing the point. Even if that is true, wars still produce injustice. And it is the poor who suffer the most.

Consequently, the Church must call on the state to pursue just solutions to conflicts. But I fear that the US system demands war.

Why is that? There is too much money to be made. When money has as much political influence as it does in the US, then it is almost guaranteed that the US will continue to wage war.

NB: See The Business of War. See also the livestream we held with James McCarty, one of the book’s editors.

Trump and the Nobel Peace Prize

When politicians present themselves as advocates for peace, we must dig deeper: what are their political motivations? While some may act from compassion, most decisions are driven by personal or political gain and/or financial concerns.

Take JD Vance’s recent comments, “We are done funding this Ukraine war. . . . If the Europeans want to step up and buy the weapons from American producers, we are okay with that.”

Vance’s rhetoric has nothing to do with establishing a just peace for those afflicted by war or for the preservation of young men and women who are dying in said wars. His concerns are simply economic. America simply can’t afford to pay for these wars.

This is my concern with Trump. He seems more concerned with his reputation and his stated desire to win the Nobel Peace Prize than he is with making peace for the sake of the suffering.

NB: Trump recently said that he has ended five wars. One of the five, for which he claimed success, was the war in Iran, which, he explained, he stopped by bombing them.

It is almost as if you can’t make this stuff up. That sounds more like starting a war than stopping it. Is the strategy to win the Nobel Peace Prize to start a bunch of wars and then end them and take credit for establishing peace all over the world?  

How might Trump win the Nobel Peace Prize, when, in addition to the bombing of Iran and the continued billions of weapons to Ukraine, as well as the unquestioning support for Israel’s genocide in Gaza, there is also the war he started with Yemen?

NB: I cannot express how absurd it is that Benjamin Netanyahu, the author of one of the most vicious genocides this century, has nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.

MAGA

I should note that I consistently criticized the Biden-Harris foreign policy efforts—even suggesting that they are war criminals.

Trump’s election brought the prospect that at least he might get the US out of these foreign wars. After all, these wars are not good for the US–which accords with his MAGA efforts.

During his campaign, Trump promised that he would end the war in Ukraine in 24 hours. Since taking office, he has repeatedly called the war in Ukraine “Biden’s war”—all the while he continues to approve arms shipments to Ukraine.

NB: Trump was also instrumental in lighting the fires that became the Russia-Ukraine war.

So, why hasn’t he stopped the war in Ukraine?  The continuation of the war not only harms Trump’s credibility (24 hours have become 7 months and counting), but it also seriously weakens the US, which has spent hundreds of billions of dollars.

MAGA: Slashing government spending

Trump’s MAGA base celebrates his severe cuts to domestic services and spending. But if MAGA is the goal, then why continue to fund foreign wars in Israel and Ukraine, as well as the costly bombing campaigns in Iran and Yemen?

Moreover, why does the new budget include $1 trillion for the Pentagon?

Suppose Trump truly desires to bring a halt to the endless wars. Why not reduce Pentagon spending (I know that some of the funding for these foreign wars comes from additional spending approved by Congress)?

And, if the concern of MAGA is to slash government waste and excessive spending, then why increase the Pentagon’s budget? After all, the Pentagon has never managed to pass an audit.

The only reasonable answer is that major donors and corporate interests are driving Trump’s policy.

If this is so, then it is not about MAGA, but about money and power.

NB: I am addressing this very point in a weekly series of videos under the playlist “Revelation Revealed.” A new video (15 mins or less) releases every Wednesday night. The aim of this series is to examine the book of Revelation to discern what John’s message to the seven churches was then and what it means for us today.

Trump’s MAGA may sound fine (I personally have no problem with a politician’s aim to serve their constituency—though I do have a problem with the notion that America has ever been “great” from the perspective of all its people).

And, it seems, MAGA cares little about the poor.

And this is my concern. The very people we are called to advocate for the most are the same people who suffer the most from the current administration’s tactics.

Wars are continuing. And the militarization of the state continues to increase.

Will Trump at least bring an end to the war in Ukraine? Experts seem to believe that the answer is “no.”

Who pays for all of this?

The problem with the militarization of the state is that it is, as always, the poor who suffer the most. One might think that the aim of MAGA is to care for those within the US. One might hope that it includes the poor.

Unfortunately, the massive budget cuts have excised many of the programs designed to care for the poor. And the increase in government spending on the military will surely not help either.

Jesus must be rolling over in His grave—oh yeah, He’s not in it!

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