As both an American and a Christian, I am deeply troubled by the catastrophic damage President Donald Trump and his political allies have inflicted on our nation. Equally concerning is the harm done to Christian witness by the religious right figures who have enabled and collaborated with him. The upcoming midterm elections offer a crucial opportunity to reverse this destructive trajectory—and not a moment too soon.
The Corruption of Faith and Politics
What could breed more cynicism than Republicans who claim to revere the Constitution while abandoning the rule of law, excusing Trump's self-dealing, and erecting barriers to voting? And what could undermine faith more than religious leaders who profess truth while condoning Trump's lies, cruelty, and attacks on opponents' dignity? These hypocrisies are eroding public trust in both our political and spiritual institutions.
Consider the vicious smears against Christians who refuse to accept Trump as divinely anointed. Senate candidates James Talarico and Adam Hamilton—a Presbyterian seminarian and pastor of America's largest Methodist church—have been demonized for their faithful dissent. Talarico has been called a "fake" Christian, a "tool for the devil," and even "son of Satan" for respectfully challenging Republican colleagues who wrap harmful policies in religious language. Meanwhile, avowedly Christian leaders rally around Ken Paxton, one of the most corrupt figures in American politics.
Vice President JD Vance, who once tried to lecture the pope on Catholic social teaching, blatantly lied about Hamilton's faith and declared the author of 30 books on Christianity not a real Christian. Such dishonesty is as pathetic as it is damaging.
A Deal with the Devil
Religious right leaders have spent decades amassing power by claiming ownership of faith, family, and freedom—while pushing agendas that have made lives more fragile and less free. They have attacked progressive Christians like Martin Luther King Jr. and Senator Raphael Warnock, whose faith inspired their justice-seeking work.
When Trump emerged, he struck a bargain with these leaders. In 2016, he promised them unprecedented political power if they delivered their followers' votes. One evangelical writer compared this to Satan's temptation of Jesus in the wilderness—a deal Jesus rejected. But these leaders took it, and they have been drunk on the power and access Trump provided.
Doubling Down Despite Growing Discontent
Polls suggest many American Christians, including former Trump voters, are weary of his bigotry, bullying, and indifference to the economic struggles of millions. That gives me hope. Yet religious right leaders are doubling down. Trump's faith advisor Paula White and her National Faith Advisory Board are mobilizing pastors to turn churches into get-out-the-vote machines for Republican candidates.
Moreover, the religious right's big-data and big-money turnout operations are spending tens of millions to preserve Republican majorities and shield Trump from oversight. I fear that if Trump's team attempts to interfere with elections or refuse to honor results, these figures will back his lies again.
A Test of Character
If Trump, with Republican support, tries another coup against the expressed will of the people, it will severely test our democratic institutions. It will also force Trump's Christian supporters to choose between their commitment to democracy and their loyalty to its corrupter-in-chief. Jesus asked, "For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?" I am not confident how they will answer.
So the rest of us must be prepared to defend democracy and fight for the soul of our country. The midterms are a chance to begin that fight.
Svante Myrick is president of People For the American Way.
