10-10-2018, 04:55 PM
Maybe so. Starting with women
Beto O’Rourke May Benefit From an Unlikely Support Group: White Evangelical Women
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/09/us/politics/texas-beto-orourke-evangelicals-women.html?fallback=0&recId=1BOgHdW9GxkniY3550ghKuJIrPN&locked=0&geoContinent=NA&geoRegion=PA&recAlloc=contextual-bandit-home-geo&geoCountry=US&blockId=midterm-elections&imp_id=427747928&action=click&module=Election%202018&pgtype=Homepage
To Democrats nationwide, who have largely written off white evangelical voters, it also sends a signal — not just for the midterms but also for the 2020 presidential campaign — that there are female, religious voters who are open to some of their party’s candidates.
The women, who are all in their 30s, described Mr. O’Rourke as providing a stark moral contrast to Mr. Trump, whose policies and behavior they see as fundamentally anti-Christian, especially separating immigrant children from their parents at the border, banning many Muslim refugees and disrespecting women.
The women were especially frustrated with pastors in their own backyard, like Robert Jeffress, who leads the nearby First Baptist Dallas and who is one of Mr. Trump’s most vocal supporters.
“You are doing so much damage,” added Sarah Bailey, as if Mr. Jeffress were in the room.
“He’s a pastor, so I should identify with what he says,’’ Ms. Bailey said. “That’s how I grew up. For me, it was finally knowing that it was O.K. to push back.”
At times, however, their support feels hush-hush. A few of their other friends who support Mr. O’Rourke are married to men who support Mr. Cruz and have refused to let them speak about it publicly. One friend said she wanted to protect her marriage, and worried she’d be “crucified, burned at the stake” if people found out, Ms. Clarke said.
“My hope would be that women in similar places as us would feel liberated from the expectation that you’re just doing the same thing you’ve always done, because it’s safe, because it’s what your pastor is telling you to do, or your husband,” Ms. Clarke said. “We have to own it.”
Then there is the Race issue:
Is Trump Racist? Is There a Double Standard? California Pastors Debate.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/02/us/politics/roseanne-barr-california-pastors-trump.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article
Three evangelical pastors from Fresno — a city that is half Hispanic, a third non-Hispanic white, and a tenth black — met Thursday morning to talk with The New York Times. ... Ms. Barr’s tweet likening a black former aide to President Barack Obama to an ape was undeniably racist, the three pastors agreed. Equally troubling, they said, was Mr. Trump’s lack of condemnation of it.
Mr. Loera voted for Mr. Trump in 2016, and supports many of his policies. But on this issue he believes Mr. Trump has let him down.
“I don’t care what Roseanne says,” he said, seated with the other pastors on blue chairs in the foyer of his church. “As a veteran, as a citizen, I care what my president says. It is getting really hard to defend him.”
He added that Mr. Trump’s response to examples of racism was especially important because the president has aligned himself with evangelicals, who provided him with one of his most important sources of voter support in 2016.
“The bigots are coming out of the closet,” he said, citing episodes like the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va., last summer. “They have a person in the presidency that will keep them alive.”
Even Evangelicals supportive of Trump have recognized how defending him has lowered ethical standards.
Shrugging Off Trump Scandals, Evangelicals Look to Rescue G.O.P.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/24/us/politics/trump-evangelicals-midterm-elections.html?action=click&module=RelatedCoverage&pgtype=Article®ion=Footer
“Now even the Christian culture is O.K. with it,” said Jim Daly, the president of Focus on the Family, one of the nation’s largest evangelical groups. “That’s the sadness,” he added. “The next time a Democrat in the presidency has a moral failure, who’s going to be able to say anything?”
But Christian conservatives say Mr. Trump has also more than honored his end of the bargain that brought reluctant members of their ranks along during his presidential campaign. He has begun the process of moving the American Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, won the confirmation of numerous judges and a Supreme Court Justice who seem likely to advance their anti-abortion cause, moved against transgender protections throughout the government, increased the ability of churches to organize politically and personally supported the March for Life.
But maybe not; the bulk of Evangelicals may continue their support:
So far, the decision by most conservative evangelical leaders to double down on their support for Mr. Trump is playing out like most of the other moments when skeptics of the president believed he had finally undermined himself with his base.
A poll released last week by the Public Religion Research Institute found white evangelical approval for Mr. Trump at its highest level ever: 75 percent. Only 22 percent said they had an unfavorable view of the president.
Beto O’Rourke May Benefit From an Unlikely Support Group: White Evangelical Women
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/09/us/politics/texas-beto-orourke-evangelicals-women.html?fallback=0&recId=1BOgHdW9GxkniY3550ghKuJIrPN&locked=0&geoContinent=NA&geoRegion=PA&recAlloc=contextual-bandit-home-geo&geoCountry=US&blockId=midterm-elections&imp_id=427747928&action=click&module=Election%202018&pgtype=Homepage
To Democrats nationwide, who have largely written off white evangelical voters, it also sends a signal — not just for the midterms but also for the 2020 presidential campaign — that there are female, religious voters who are open to some of their party’s candidates.
The women, who are all in their 30s, described Mr. O’Rourke as providing a stark moral contrast to Mr. Trump, whose policies and behavior they see as fundamentally anti-Christian, especially separating immigrant children from their parents at the border, banning many Muslim refugees and disrespecting women.
The women were especially frustrated with pastors in their own backyard, like Robert Jeffress, who leads the nearby First Baptist Dallas and who is one of Mr. Trump’s most vocal supporters.
“You are doing so much damage,” added Sarah Bailey, as if Mr. Jeffress were in the room.
“He’s a pastor, so I should identify with what he says,’’ Ms. Bailey said. “That’s how I grew up. For me, it was finally knowing that it was O.K. to push back.”
At times, however, their support feels hush-hush. A few of their other friends who support Mr. O’Rourke are married to men who support Mr. Cruz and have refused to let them speak about it publicly. One friend said she wanted to protect her marriage, and worried she’d be “crucified, burned at the stake” if people found out, Ms. Clarke said.
“My hope would be that women in similar places as us would feel liberated from the expectation that you’re just doing the same thing you’ve always done, because it’s safe, because it’s what your pastor is telling you to do, or your husband,” Ms. Clarke said. “We have to own it.”
Then there is the Race issue:
Is Trump Racist? Is There a Double Standard? California Pastors Debate.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/02/us/politics/roseanne-barr-california-pastors-trump.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article
Three evangelical pastors from Fresno — a city that is half Hispanic, a third non-Hispanic white, and a tenth black — met Thursday morning to talk with The New York Times. ... Ms. Barr’s tweet likening a black former aide to President Barack Obama to an ape was undeniably racist, the three pastors agreed. Equally troubling, they said, was Mr. Trump’s lack of condemnation of it.
Mr. Loera voted for Mr. Trump in 2016, and supports many of his policies. But on this issue he believes Mr. Trump has let him down.
“I don’t care what Roseanne says,” he said, seated with the other pastors on blue chairs in the foyer of his church. “As a veteran, as a citizen, I care what my president says. It is getting really hard to defend him.”
He added that Mr. Trump’s response to examples of racism was especially important because the president has aligned himself with evangelicals, who provided him with one of his most important sources of voter support in 2016.
“The bigots are coming out of the closet,” he said, citing episodes like the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va., last summer. “They have a person in the presidency that will keep them alive.”
Even Evangelicals supportive of Trump have recognized how defending him has lowered ethical standards.
Shrugging Off Trump Scandals, Evangelicals Look to Rescue G.O.P.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/24/us/politics/trump-evangelicals-midterm-elections.html?action=click&module=RelatedCoverage&pgtype=Article®ion=Footer
“Now even the Christian culture is O.K. with it,” said Jim Daly, the president of Focus on the Family, one of the nation’s largest evangelical groups. “That’s the sadness,” he added. “The next time a Democrat in the presidency has a moral failure, who’s going to be able to say anything?”
But Christian conservatives say Mr. Trump has also more than honored his end of the bargain that brought reluctant members of their ranks along during his presidential campaign. He has begun the process of moving the American Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, won the confirmation of numerous judges and a Supreme Court Justice who seem likely to advance their anti-abortion cause, moved against transgender protections throughout the government, increased the ability of churches to organize politically and personally supported the March for Life.
But maybe not; the bulk of Evangelicals may continue their support:
So far, the decision by most conservative evangelical leaders to double down on their support for Mr. Trump is playing out like most of the other moments when skeptics of the president believed he had finally undermined himself with his base.
A poll released last week by the Public Religion Research Institute found white evangelical approval for Mr. Trump at its highest level ever: 75 percent. Only 22 percent said they had an unfavorable view of the president.
![[Image: 4CV0TeR.png]](https://i.imgur.com/4CV0TeR.png)
