A Question for Christian Supporters of U.S.A. Presidential Candidate Donald Trump

A Question for Christian Supporters of U.S.A. Presidential Candidate Donald Trump

Here’s my question to you—Christian supporters of Donald Trump for president of the United States: Why?

Now, to prevent an avalanche of responses I can’t moderate, let me narrow the field of welcome responses that have a good chance of getting through and appearing here.

First, campaigning for any candidate is not welcome; please don’t bother. It will be a waste of your time and mine. I will not post responses that simply amount to political campaigning for or against any candidate.

Second, keep your response brief—no more than 250 words. And make it substantial in terms of content; gives reasonable reasons—reasons that appeal to policies and principles and explain why you think Trump will follow those principles and attempt to enact those policies if elected president. In most cases that will require careful choosing of the single “top reason” followed by explanation.

Third, be civil and respectful of everyone; do not engage in hateful rhetoric about any individual or group. Feel free to express opposition to people’s beliefs and behaviors, but do so with respect for them as human beings.

What I am seeking is explanations of Christian support for Donald Trump for president of the United States that transcend mere celebrity status, personality and rhetoric. Are there Christians out there—in the United States or U.S. citizens living outside the country—who support Trump for president on principle? If so, what are those principles? And what causes such Trump-supporting Christians to believe that, if he is elected president, he will conduct his presidency guided by them and have some chance of actually creating policies guided by them?

I ask this because many leading conservative commentators, including some evangelical Christians who usually support Republican candidates, are expressing high concern about Trump. I would say some of their published expressions of opinion border on being hysterical (and not in the comic sense of the word) about his now all but certain nomination by the Republican Party. Some are pointing out to Christians who support Trump that such support seems inconsistent with conservative Christians’ traditional concerns about character and lifestyle. Some are pointing out to all Republicans that, in their opinion of his record of political pronouncements and financial support of candidates, he is not a principled conservative at all. Some are claiming that he has no principles except power and that the policies he has embraced are either dangerous to a pluralistic democracy or impossible to enact (without dictatorial power).

So, to repeat—what I seek are principled explanations from thoughtful Christian Trump supporters for their support of him as president of the United States—arguably the most powerful position in the world.

Again, follow my explicitly stated guidelines above if you hope for your comment to be posted here. And expect pushback especially if your explanation lacks the key component expected of all commenters here—critical reflection based on informed reasoning (as opposed to mere assertions). In fact, if your comment lacks that key component it will probably not see the light of day here; I will simply delete it. However, I am aware that that component is somewhat subjective, so I welcome serious attempts at it that are stated in a civil manner.

(Footnote: Why am I not asking the same about Christian support for Hilary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic nominee? Well, simply because there are few, if any, liberal-progressive Christians or non-Christians loudly expressing dismay about her potential nomination. There may be concern about her “legal troubles,” but the vast majority of traditional Democratic voters—including politically progressive Christians–will easily fall behind her without strong cognitive dissonance once Bernie Sanders bows out of the race. Nobody I have read is claiming she does not represent “progressive political ideals.” Please do not respond to this footnote.)