How Donald Trump Thinks He Helped 'Religion Itself'
Donald Trump built a campaign of appealing to conservatives and Christians alike, promising to promote and uphold Christian values while in office. Now, it seems, he wants his praise for what he considers to be following through on those promises. In a recent interview, the former president stated that he has helped "religion itself" during his time in office. Here's why.
During a phone interview for The Victory Channel's "FlashPoint" on September 30, Trump told host Gene Bailey that "nobody has done more for Christianity or for evangelicals — or for religion itself — than I have, [doing] so many different things." Among the "things" he referenced, "getting rid" of the Johnson Amendment, a piece of legislation that he described as "a very bad thing and very costly," per Newsweek. The Johnson Amendment is a part of the U.S. tax code that prevents nonprofit organizations from financially backing or working against a political candidate, per NPR. Trump signed an executive order in 2017 that eased these rules on the basis that they restricted church's right to freedom of speech.
Trump also discussed the Mexico City policy, which stops federal funding for foreign organizations that make referrals for and discuss abortion. However, Trump isn't the first politician to get involved with this policy. Since its inception in 1973, it is regularly rescinded by Democrats and brought back by Republicans, depending on who is in office, per Business Insider. It is also worth noting that Trump works with a "spiritual advisor."
Donald Trump and Christianity
In the same interview with "FlashPoint," Trump stated that since being in office, President Joe Biden and his administration have performed poorly in terms of religion. "I said that Biden was going to be bad, he's turned out to be far worse than anybody ever thought. You talk about abortion, you talk about all of the subjects," Trump said, per Business Insider. "He's terrible on these subjects, and he lied. And just like they cheated on the election, the election was rigged, just like that happened they also cheated very much on what they really think of organized religion and religion and frankly Christianity."
A Pew Research Center poll found that most people don't consider Trump to be religious, but that hasn't stopped him from aiming to appeal to his voters of faith. Speaking with Religious News Service in 2020, he touched on his religious beliefs. "I now consider myself to be a non-denominational Christian," Trump said. "Melania and I have gotten to visit some amazing churches and meet with great faith leaders from around the world. During the unprecedented COVID-19 outbreak, I tuned into several virtual church services and know that millions of Americans did the same."
How exactly Biden "cheated" on religion and where Trump is getting his numbers for the impact he has had on "religion itself" remain unclear. But one thing is certain, Trump isn't letting up on his branding as a man of the church.