When Did Character Stop Mattering?

Today, 2024, most Christian Trump supporters (and others) claim that Trump’s character doesn’t matter because they are not voting for him to be America’s pastor. Wait. Let’s look back in history—just a little way.

The year was 1987. The leading candidate for the Democratic nomination for president of the U.S. was Colorado senator Gary Hart. He was a shoo-in for the nomination. People compared him with the late Robert Kennedy. He was a Christian (raised Nazarene).

In mid-year Gary Hart’s affair was revealed. He dropped out of the presidential race after harsh criticism for his immorality mainly by Republicans. He tried to re-enter the race later in 1987 but had to drop out for the same reason.

President Bill Clinton was attacked by Republicans (and some Democrats) for his affair with a White House intern. He escaped being thrown out of office. Republicans loudly bemoaned his immorality. Many, perhaps most, expressed that a person with that lifestyle should not be president of the U.S. because the president is a role model of character for especially young people.

Don’t try to tell me that these men were mainly criticized for their policies and NOT for their characters. I lived through these controversies and remember well that especially Republicans attacked them for their lapses of morality and character.

Now the shoe is on the other foot. Now Republican supporters of Trump are engaging in hypocrisy WHEN they say they don’t care about Trump’s character because they aren’t voting for him to be the nation’s pastor. That excuse rings so hollow it’s hard to hear and impossible to take seriously. They WOULD care if the same character was that of a Democratic candidate or president.

There are other Republicans of good character they could turn to. So why Trump? I believe because he is a bully. He pretends that his followers’ enemies are his enemies. Or maybe they are. It’s hard to tell given Trump’s history in politics. This is what I believe. Trump’s passionate supporters, many of them conservative Christians, support him precisely BECAUSE they want a strong man in the White House to forcefully turn their conservative social and political beliefs into public policy—by whatever means necessary.

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