Trump launched (white) evangelicals for Trump at a megachurch in Florida, where at one point, the crowd broke into a lock her up chant.
According to the White House Pool Report as provided to PoliticusUSA by the White House, Trump said:
“Qassem Soleimani has been killed and his bloody rampage is now, forever gone.â€
“He was plotting attacks Americans, but we’ve now insured his atrocities have been stopped for good.â€
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… “He was planning a major attack, but we got him.â€
“We do not seek war, we do not seek nation-building, we do not seek regime change.â€
“So let this be a warning to terrorists, if you value your own life, you will not threaten the lives of American citizens.â€
He’s now back to your typical rally fodder including knocking ex-2020 candidate Beto O’Rourke and Elizabeth “Pocahontas†Warren.
There was a brief “Lock Her Up†chant that broke out upon Trump’s reference to Hillary Clinton.
He also suggested three-quarters of “the squad†was anti-Semitic.
‘These people hate Israel. They hate Jewish people. I won’t name them. I won’t bring up the name of Omar, Tlaib, AOC. I won’t bring that name up. Won’t bring it up. I will not bring it up! But where do these people come from?’
Trump was supposedly launching Evangelicals for Trump at the event, but as the Rev. Dr. Chuck Currie pointed out, Trump was really relaunching White Evangelicals for Trump:
Donald Trump isn't launching Evangelicals for Trump tonight in Florida. He’s relaunching White Evangelicals for Trump. It's a group mostly out of denominations like t/ South Baptist Convention, formed in support of slavery. Trump evangelicals support white nationalism even today.
— Rev. Dr. Chuck Currie (@RevChuckCurrie) January 3, 2020
Trump is trying to shore up his support with evangelicals after Christianity Today called for his removal from office. There are signs of cracks in Trump’s evangelical support. The hardcore cultists who long ago sold out their faith for politics aren’t going to be moved, as evidenced by supposed Christians in a house of worship calling for a political opponent to be locked up.
The conservative evangelical movement has been corrupted for decades and has completely lost its way. The White Evangelicals for Trump are not people of faith, but political activists who are hiding behind a religious disguise.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
