Former President Donald Trump recently expressed that he has a strong relationship with God when discussing his commitment to Evangelical Christians nationwide. The presumptive Republican presidential nominee made the comments during a recent interview with Fox News’ “Fox & Friends,” during which he discussed faith and the dynamic between him and Christian voters.
When asked about his relationship with God, Trump said, “I think it’s good. I do very well with the Evangelicals. I love the Evangelicals. And I have more people saying they pray for me ― I can’t even believe it. And they are so committed, and they’re so believing. They say, ‘Sir, you’re going to be OK. I pray for you every night.’ I mean, everybody, almost ― I can’t say everybody, but almost everybody that sees me, they say it.”
However, MSNBC host Joe Scarborough lashed out at Trump over his faith-related comments. “I mean, seriously, just go to church once, right? Just get the crib notes, all right?” he said while laughing at Trump’s comments. “When somebody asks you what your relationship is with God … don’t go, ‘Well, Evangelicals vote for me.’ They say, ‘Sir, we vote for you.’ … It’s just beyond parody,” he added.
Earlier this year, The American Tribune reported on comments from former President Donald Trump where he vowed to protect Christians, whom he labeled the “soul of our country.” Trump said, “Americans of faith are not a threat to our country. Americans of faith are the soul of our country.”
He added that communist regimes and authoritarian governments will often persecute churches. “Remember: Every communist regime throughout history has tried to stamp out the churches, just like every fascist regime has tried to co-op them and control them. And in America, the radical Left is trying to do both at the same time,” he said. “They want to tear down crosses where they can and cover them up with social justice flags. … They want to take off the names George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson off schools and off monuments.”
However, the former president maintained that when he is reelected, he will “aggressively defend” religious freedom in America, a core facet of the country’s founding. Trump particularly noted that he will protect Christians and God in the “public square.”
“When I return to the White House, I will once again aggressively defend religious liberty just like I had for four years.” He continued, “You had no problems. But we’re going to defend it in all of its forms. We will protect Christians in our schools and our military and our government and in all of those airwaves. … And we will protect God in our public square.”
Furthermore, Trump vowed that he would prevent the government of powerful industries from oppressing Christians while he would oppose the “radical values” enforced on society. “I will never allow the big media or left-wing pressure groups to silence you, censor you, discriminate against you, or in any way tell you what you have to say … There’s enough filth on our airwaves, American families need a haven where our children can be taught our values – not have radical values forced upon them.”
Featured image credit: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Donald_Trump_(8567813820)_(2).jpg