Pew Research: “The 116th Congress includes the first two Muslim women ever to serve in the House of Representatives and is slightly more religiously diverse overall than the prior Congress. Still, 88% of the members are Christian, compared with 71% of U.S. adults overall.”
Just dropped · Trial Balloon · Ep. 192
November Surprises
Trial Balloon · Ep. 192: November Surprises
Quote of the Day
“I never said he was the best example of the Christian faith. He defends the faith. And I appreciate that very much.”
— Evangelical leader Franklin Graham, in an interview with Axios, on why he supports President Trump.
Duncan Hunter Goes Full Anti-Muslim
The Atlantic: “Publicly disgraced, out of money, and facing both jail time and a suddenly-surging challenger—what was an indicted congressman to do?”
“Eventually, Hunter seemed to arrive at his answer: try to eke out a win by waging one of the most brazenly anti-Muslim smear campaigns in recent history.”
“In the final weeks of the election, Hunter has aired ominous ads warning that his Democratic opponent, Ammar Campa-Najjar, is ‘working to infiltrate Congress’ with the support of the Muslim Brotherhood. He has circulated campaign literature claiming the Democrat is a ‘national security threat’ who might reveal secret U.S. troop movements to enemies abroad if elected. While Hunter himself floats conspiracy theories from the stump about a wave of ‘radical Muslims’ running for office in America, his campaign is working overtime to cast Campa-Najjar as a nefarious figure reared and raised by terrorists.”
GOP Candidate Said No Peace In Israel Until Jews Convert
North Carolina congressional candidate Mark Harris (R), a former Baptist pastor in Charlotte, said in 2011 that there would be no peace in Israel unless Jews and Muslims converted to Christianity, The Forward reports.
Said Harris: “You cannot be in that land, as powerful and as moving as it is, without realizing the incredible tension that is constantly in that land between the Palestinians and the Jews. There will never be peace in Jerusalem until the day comes that every knee shall bow, every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.”
GOP Lawmaker Urges Creation of ‘Holy Army’
Washington state Rep. Matt Shea (R) acknowledged he had distributed a four-page manifesto titled “Biblical Basis for War,” which describes the Christian God as a “warrior,” details the composition and strategies of a “Holy Army” and condemns abortion and same-sex marriage, the Seattle Times reports.
The document is organized in 14 sections with multiple tiers of bullet points and a smattering of biblical citations. Under one heading, “Rules of War,” it makes a chilling prescription for enemies who flout “biblical law.”
Pence Appears with ‘Rabbi’ Who Says ‘Jesus is the Messiah’
“Two days after the deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history, Vice President Pence bowed his head at a rally in Michigan as a religious leader who casts himself as a “rabbi” offered a prayer for the victims in Pittsburgh,” the Washington Post reports.
“But the man who shared a stage with Pence, Loren Jacobs, preaches Messianic Judaism, a tradition central to Jews for Jesus, a group condemned by Jewish leaders as faux Judaism that seeks to promote Christian evangelism.”
NBC News: “The ‘Messianic rabbi’ who outraged many Jews by invoking the name of Jesus while delivering a prayer in memory of the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre victims was also spurned Tuesday by the organization that ordained him.”
Evangelical Leaders Frustrated with GOP Caution
“Worried their chance to cement a conservative majority on the Supreme Court could slip away, a growing number of evangelical and anti-abortion leaders are expressing frustration that Senate Republicans and the White House are not protecting Judge Brett Kavanaugh more forcefully from a sexual assault allegation and warning that conservative voters may stay home in November if his nomination falls apart,” the New York Times reports.
“The pleas are, in part, an attempt to apply political pressure: Some evangelical leaders are warning that religious conservatives may feel little motivation to vote in the midterm elections unless Senate Republicans move the nomination out of committee soon and do more to defend Judge Kavanaugh from what they say is a desperate Democratic ploy to prevent President Trump from filling future court vacancies.”
GOP Lawmaker Accuses Atheists of Spying on School
Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) claimed that what he described as “atheist litigation groups” in California were trying to get hidden video of Christian student activities at a local high school, the Shreveport Times reports.
“Johnson’s claims are the latest chapter in a saga involving a federal lawsuit alleging that teachers and other staff have consistently promoted Christianity in Bossier Parish Schools in violation of the U.S. Constitution. The lawsuit also alleges that some teachers or staff have sought to shame or coerce non-Christian students.”
Stephen Miller Condemned by Childhood Rabbi
The childhood rabbi to Stephen Miller, special adviser to Donald Trump and a key architect of his “zero-tolerance” immigration policies, criticized his former charge as a purveyor of “negativity, violence, malice and brutality” who had learned nothing from his Jewish spiritual education, The Guardian reports.
Pence Quotes Bible In Response to New Book
Vice President Mike Pence turned to the Bible when asked recently what he makes of a new critical biography, The Shadow President, that calls him a “Christian supremacist,” USA Today reports.
Said Pence: “The Bible says count it all joy when you endure trials of many kinds. Any time I’m criticized for my belief in Jesus Christ, I just breath a prayer of praise.”
Our recent podcast episode with the authors of the book is very good.
Trump Ignites Wave of Muslim-American Candidates
“For the first time in two decades, American Arabs and Muslims are stepping up to run for public office in record numbers, registering to vote and bundling money for candidates from their community,” NBC News reports.
“With inflammatory rhetoric on immigration and his active push for a travel ban aimed primarily at Muslim-majority countries, Trump has put a national spotlight on the community’s long running travails. Trump has called for the monitoring of mosques and appointed Cabinet members and political advisers who have disparaged Muslims.”
“He’s also likely put the final nail in the coffin for the community’s waning support for the GOP.”
Archbishop Says Francis Knew of Abuse
“The former top Vatican diplomat in the United States alleged in a letter published on Sunday that Pope Francis knew about the abuses of a now-disgraced American prelate years before they became public,” the New York Times reports.
“The bombshell accusation, leveled by Carlo Maria Viganò, a staunch critic of Francis, immediately threatened to derail the pope’s difficult mission to demonstrate his commitment to combating the clerical sex abuse scandals that threaten his church on the same day he begged “the Lord’s forgiveness” at a shrine in Ireland.”
Racial Fear Is Key to Trump’s Support Among Evangelicals
Janelle Wong: “My research indicates white evangelical conservatism correlates strongly with their perceptions anti-white discrimination, even after taking into account economic status, party, age and region. Fully 50 percent of white evangelical respondents to our 2016 survey reported feeling they face discrimination that’s comparable to, or even higher than, the discrimination they believe Muslim Americans face. Those who hold this perception are more likely to hold conservative attitudes on issues as wide-ranging as climate change, tax policy and health-care reform.”
“Here’s what is not behind these beliefs: economic anxiety. Like PRRI and political scientist Diana Mutz, I find economic anxiety isn’t a primary reason for supporting Trump. Rather, white evangelicals fear losing racial status. White evangelicals’ perceptions they’re the targets of discrimination – more so than other groups — influence far more than simply their votes for Trump.”
“Yes, 80 percent of white evangelicals supported Donald Trump in 2016. And the racial fears and anxieties that underlie their support for the president will probably remain the driver in their political views long after he leaves office.”
New Movie Says Trump Was Chosen by God
“A collaboration between an independent Christian filmmaker and one of America’s largest evangelical universities is showcasing the growing prominence of a provocative belief about President Trump ― that he was divinely appointed to lead the United States,” the HuffPost reports.
Televangelist Says God Wants Him to Have $54 Million Jet
A prosperity gospel televangelist is asking his followers to “pray about becoming a partner” to his mission of obtaining a $54 million private jet, CBS News reports.
The Louisiana-based ministry of Jesse Duplantis has already paid cash for three other private planes, but he says God told him, “I want you to believe in me for a Falcon 7X.”
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One-Fifth of Americans Have No Religious Affiliation
A new ABC News poll finds the number of adults expressing no religious affiliation has risen from 12% in 2003 to 21% of all adults in 2017. That includes 3% who say they’re atheists, 3% agnostic and 15% who say they have no religion.
The largest shifts during this 15-year period include 16-point increases among young adults (age 18 to 29) and political liberals.
John Bolton Chaired Anti-Muslim Think Tank
“John Bolton, President Trump’s new national security adviser, chaired a nonprofit that has promoted misleading and false anti-Muslim news, some of which was amplified by a Russian troll factory,” an NBC News review found.
“The group’s authors also appeared on Russian media, including Sputnik and RT News, criticizing mainstream European leaders like French President Emmanuel Macron.”
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Taegan Goddard
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.
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