A quick message to President-elect Donald Trump: If you’re sending out “Thank You Cards” the first one needs to be sent here:
Evangelical Christians
P.O. Box 777
You’re Welcome, USA
Trump would never have become president of the United States if evangelicals didn’t support him in record numbers. He became the GOP nominee because of evangelicals and this past week, 81 percent of white, born-again, evangelical Christians voted for him. That’s an all-time record.
Mitt Romney and George W. Bush clocked in at 78 percent. Trump blew that number out of the water. Drilling down even further, Trump received 85 percent support from white, born-again, evangelical Christians in Florida and 82 percent in North Carolina.
Folks, he wouldn’t have won those two crucial states if evangelicals didn’t EXCEED the national 81 percent number. And if he had lost both of those states, he would have lost the general election.
Many pundits just can’t understand why evangelicals would vote for Trump let alone show up in record numbers. It’s really very simple. I will list five main reasons (in no particular order):
- Trump himself - They like his no-nonsense approach and authenticity. They like that he isn’t afraid to speak the truth (the way he sees it) and evangelicals like speaking truth as well when it comes to God’s word. Trump sees a world of absolutes and evangelicals see a world of biblical absolutes. They also understand the concept of grace and are willing to afford it to him.
- Hillary Clinton- Umm, ‘nuff said right? If I type anymore about this, my carpel tunnel will act up.
- Supreme Court- evangelicals are not stupid. I know this is a shock to Rachel Maddow and many other liberals, but they understand what’s at stake. This was their last chance to remold a Supreme Court that’s been tilting against them.
- Mike Pence- Simply put, a great pick that eased the minds of a lot of conservative Christian voters. A plus.
- Evangelical Surrogates- Ben Carson, Mike Huckabee, Kellyanne Conway and others helped calm the fears of some voters.
Trump changed the electoral map in 2016. We haven’t seen this since Ronald Reagan. So what do the two have in common?
Clearly they have very different styles to say the least! But they both were able to convey a true love of America and secondly, they both oozed authenticity. Voters pick up on traits like that. Both Trump and Reagan were able to get to the heart of the voter because, remember, most people don’t vote with their brain; they vote with their heart.
Finally, a couple other points to consider: It’s really been fascinating to watch a brash billionaire relate to working class voters. That’s quite a skill. If Mitt Romney had that skill, he’d be president. But Trump has that skill because he’s a street brawler from New York and blue-collar voters related to it.
Secondly, Hillary Clinton’s big mistake was trying to go after Trump’s character. Sixteen GOP candidates tried that and it backfired. It backfired on her too. Why? Because when you have your own character issues, you lose much of the moral standing to criticize your opponent. Bad move.
So now we wait to see what America will be like with President Trump. I know this: We’re in for one heck of a ride.