Butterfield to evangelicals: Trump is not a moral leader
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a definition of the term “evangelical” means, “…being in agreement with the Christian Gospel…,” and “ …emphasizing salvation through faith…through personal conversion….”
And yet, when it comes to Pres. Trump – whose alleged ethical shortcomings range from sleeping with a porn star four months after his wife gave birth to their son, to dabbling with white supremacists – evangelical leaders, like Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, and Rev. Franklin Graham, whose iconic father, Evangelist Billy Graham died at age 99, and was buried last week, are quick to turn that definition on its head, because for the first time in a long time, they believe they have a president who will do their bidding.
But not so fast, North Carolina Congressman G. K. Butterfield (D-NC-1) warns them.
“Evangelicals may have a seat at the table, but the political interest that’s driving [Trump’s] agenda does not include evangelicals, because the president could care less about moral values and ethics, and respect for human beings,” Butterfield said in a recent interview with the Black Press.
“This president is about making money for himself, and for his friends. He is completely unqualified to serve as president. The American people know it, and I’m waiting for the day…and it’s not far out…when the American people will say, “We’ve got to have an ethical president.”
According to Franklin Graham, conservative and Christian Americans have exactly what they need in Donald Trump.
“Our country’s got a sin problem,” Rev. Graham recently told MSNBC. “We certainly don’t hold him up as the pastor of this country, and he’s not. But I appreciate the fact that the president does have a concern for Christian values, he does have a concern to protect Christians — whether it’s here at home or around the world — and I appreciate the fact that he protects religious liberty and freedom.”
Indeed, white evangelicals voted overwhelmingly for Trump over Democrat Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential campaign. In interviews with The Washington Post, evangelicals say they are well aware of Trump’s flaws, but “…perceive him as a fellow sinner willing to fight the forces of the establishment on their behalf.”
Label those “forces of the establishment” as liberal, represented by the media and the Democrats. As long as President Trump continues fighting those “forces,” evangelicals say they will stick him.”
Rev. Dr. William Barber, co-chair of Repairers of the Breach, which is leading the upcoming Poor People’s Campaign, says the problem is much bigger than Trump.
“We can’t just lay this reality of what we’re seeing at the feet of Trump,” Dr. Barber told the program “Democracy Now” recently. “Trump is a symptom of a deeper moral malady. And if he was gone tomorrow or impeached tomorrow, the senators and the House of Representatives and Ryan and McConnell and Graham and all them would still be there. No matter how crazy they call him or names they call him or anger they get with him, it’s all a front, because at the end of the day, they might disagree with his antics, but they support his agenda.”
Rep. Butterfield agrees.
“You know, politics certainly has its place,” he said, “… but we also have to have a moral leader, and Donald Trump is not a moral leader.”
