In an effort to further capture his base, the president will be launching the “Evangelicals for Trump” coalition in Miami, Florida, on January 3.
“The Trump campaign’s launch of ‘Evangelicals for Trump’ will be held at a Florida megachurch with a capacity of 7,000 congregants, the campaign said Friday,” reports The Washington Times. “The outreach event for a key part of the president’s base will be held next Friday in Miami at El Rey Jesus, or King Jesus International Ministry.”
Though the Trump campaign previously pledged to launch the coalition, the gesture to hold the president’s base comes on the heels of Christianity Today publishing an op-ed calling for Trump’s removal from office.
“The facts in this instance are unambiguous: The president of the United States attempted to use his political power to coerce a foreign leader to harass and discredit one of the president’s political opponents,” Christianity Today Editor-in-Chief Mark Galli wrote. “That is not only a violation of the Constitution; more importantly, it is profoundly immoral.”
“The reason many are not shocked about this is that this president has dumbed down the idea of morality in his administration,” continued Galli. “He has hired and fired a number of people who are now convicted criminals. He himself has admitted to immoral actions in business and his relationship with women, about which he remains proud. His Twitter feed alone — with its habitual string of mischaracterizations, lies and slanders — is a near-perfect example of a human being who is morally lost and confused.”
The op-ed sent a shockwave across the evangelical world, prompting nearly 200 leaders to denounce Mark Galli’s argument, noting the many accomplishments President Trump has done in service of religious Christians. Franklin Graham Jr., whose father founded Christianity Today, even went as far to reveal on Facebook that the late preacher voted for Trump prior to his death.
“My father knew Donald Trump, he believed in Donald Trump, and he voted for Donald Trump,” wrote Graham. “He believed that Donald J. Trump was the man for this hour in history for our nation.”
“It’s obvious that Christianity Today has moved to the left and is representing the elitist liberal wing of evangelicalism,” he added.
As noted by LifeNews, pro-life advocates were equally fierce in their denunciations of Christianity Today for not condemning pro-abortion politicians with the same fervor as they did President Trump.
“Christianity Today, and many other liberal evangelical outlets, rightfully point out the moral failings in (select) elected leaders,” said activist Ryan Bomberger. “Yet they often fail to apply the same standards to those on the Left, especially when those politicians are advocating issues that CT champions. But where was the call for the removal of President Barack Obama? For the first time in history, an American President keynoted a fundraising gala for the leading killer of those made in God’s image — Planned Parenthood.”
In a strongly worded letter, 200 evangelical leaders denounced Galli’s column as legitimizing the partisan impeachment that Democrats have pushed.