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Much of the media was caught up in controversy over whether former President Donald Trump was misquoted. In doing so, they missed a more important story.
"Now, if I don't get elected, it's gonna be a bloodbath for the whole — that's gonna to be the least of it — it's gonna be a bloodbath for the country. That'll be the least of it," Trump said Saturday in Dayton, Ohio. Looking at this quote in isolation sounds like Trump is threatening violence if he's not elected, which is how some initially reported it. The Biden campaign also used the clip in isolation to claim Trump threatened violence. But here's the quote in full context:
Let me tell you something to China, if you’re listening President Xi, and you and I are friends, but he understands the way I deal. Those big monster car manufacturing plants that you’re building in Mexico right now, and you think you’re going to get that, you’re going to not hire Americans, and you’re going to sell the cars to us? No. We’re going to put a 100% tariff on every single car that comes across the line, and you’re not going to be able to sell those cars. If I get elected. Now, if I don’t get elected, it’s going to be a bloodbath, for the whole — that’s going to be the least of it. It’s going to be a bloodbath for the country. That’ll be the least of it. But they’re not going to sell those cars.
Trump was using "bloodbath" to mean economic damage to the auto industry. Much of the media then spent time this week on what Trump meant by bloodbath. And beyond that, what he meant by "the least of it." But all that media attention could've been better spent on some of the extremist language he actually used. My general impression is this was more an issue with cable news than print media.
In the same speech, Trump claimed that certain immigrants are "not people" and "animals." After claiming that migrants at the border were prisoners who were set free, which isn't true, he said,
Young people, they’re in jail for years, if you call them people, I don’t know if you call them people. In some cases they’re not people in my opinion, but I’m not allowed to say that because the radical left says that’s a terrible thing to say. They say you have to vote against him because did you hear what he said about humanity? I’ve seen the humanity and these humanity, these are bad. These are animals and we have to stop it.
This dehumanizing language is similar to language that contributed to the Holocaust. Trump has also previously claimed that migrants are "poisoning the blood of our country," which is similar to language used by Adolf Hitler.
And if you're concerned about violence in a potential second Trump term, there's another part of the speech you could highlight. He began the speech with a tribute to the J6 prisoners and once again promised to pardon them on his first day in office. Many of these people have already demonstrated that they will engage in violence on Trump's behalf, and he would set them free if reelected.
We should all continue to denounce violent and extremist language from political figures, but lets make sure we get the context right first, otherwise we're lending credibility to the extremists.
Promise Keepers Working With Turning Point
Promise Keepers, a Christian ministry for men, made racial reconciliation one of its primary goals when it was founded in the 1990s. Now, it's working with Turning Point USA and Charlie Kirk, who promotes white supremacist ideology.
AVC board member Pastor Caleb Campbell and I were quoted in an article about this at The Roys Report, "Promise Keepers’ Event to Feature Charlie Kirk & Dr. Phil, Prompting Concerns."
And Napp Nazworth, executive director of American Values Coalition, told TRR he is “dumbfounded” by the number of Christian leaders “willing to work and associate with Charlie Kirk.”
The former journalist explains: “Kirk promotes Great Replacement Theory, a white supremacist ideology, on his podcast. Either these leaders are unaware of Kirk’s extreme views, they don’t care about his extreme views, or, most concerning of all, they support his extreme views.”
I appreciate The Roys Report for bringing attention to this. I suspect that many Christians who've attended TPUSA conferences are unaware of the Kirk's more outrageous and racists remarks, so I hope Christian media in general will do a better job covering TPUSA and Kirk in the future.
What Else We're Reading
WaPo: "The education of a true believer: Linda Wenhold absorbed Patriot Academy’s message that America is falling apart as it drifts from its biblical roots. Then she won a seat on her local Pennsylvania school board."
Linda Wenhold closed her eyes, bowed her head and offered a prayer. “Lord, let us see that the further we move from biblical truth, the further we move from our liberty and freedom,” she began.
The 60-year-old grandmother stood at the front of a modest stone church in this former steel town just beyond the exurban sprawl of Philadelphia. About a dozen people had turned out on a cold February night for the fourth week of a 10-week course she was leading on the Constitution and America’s Christian roots, one of 500 that were underway at churches and community centers across the country. Radiators clanked. The attendees sipped coffee from foam cups.
This is a great story if you read it all the way to the end.
Religion in Public: "Christian Nationalism is Both Smear and Savior to Many Christians"
More revealing is how views about Christian nationalism as a smear are linked to views on a second statement: “Christian nationalism is the only idea that will save this fallen nation.” Of those who strongly agreed that it is a smear, 68 percent also agreed or strongly agreed that Christian nationalism is America’s savior. On the other side are those who strongly disagreed that Christian nationalism is a smear, and among them 74 percent disagreed that it is the only idea that will save America. This evidence suggests that Christians either embrace Christian nationalism as both “smear” and “savior” or reject those notions – there are very few who see it as a smear and reject it as the savior of the US.
PsyPost: "January 6 quasi-experiment reveals limited impact of anti-democratic actions on Republican Party loyalty"
The findings suggest that a significant fraction of the electorate may prioritize partisanship over democratic values when the two come into conflict. “For the far majority of Republican Party supporters, even a Republican president inciting an insurrection to overturn the results of a free and fair election — arguably a most-likely case — is insufficient to say in an anonymous phone survey that they no longer support the party/Trump (let alone take costly action to protect democracy),” Van Noort told PsyPost.
NYT: “How Trump’s Allies Are Winning the War Over Disinformation”
Projects that were once bipartisan, including one started by the Trump administration, have been recast as deep-state conspiracies to rig elections. Facing legal and political blowback, the Biden administration has largely abandoned moves that might be construed as stifling political speech.
While little noticed by most Americans, the effort has helped cut a path for Mr. Trump’s attempt to recapture the presidency. Disinformation about elections is once again coursing through news feeds, aiding Mr. Trump as he fuels his comeback with falsehoods about the 2020 election.
Event
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You're Invited to Join the AVC Book Club!
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It’s not too late to join the AVC Book Club! We’re reading Tim Alberta's The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory: American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism (affiliate link), and the author will join us for one of the meetings. We meet online Mondays, 8pm eastern. Next week we’ll cover chapters 2, 3, and 4.
Tell Your Pastor!
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Do you know a Christian pastor or ministry leader who has experienced political and cultural divisions in their church and community? Are they concerned about increasing polarization in an election year? AVC has a new project especially for them!
J29 Coalition will help pastors and ministry leaders disciple their congregations through our current challenges by connecting them with experts on these topics and putting them in fellowship with other pastors experiencing the same challenges. Our first J29 Cohort starts in April and is limited to 50 pastors. We'll meet online throughout the year and at an expenses paid trip to Chicago in September. We’re over halfway full, so sign up soon!
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