The Christian nationalists who back President Trump

One of the great mysteries of the Trump era is how a man who has two ex-wives, multiple accusations of sexual harassment and rape, multiple bankruptcies and dozens of lawsuits, openly boasted of barging into the dressing rooms of partially dressed female teenage pageant contestants, and paid hush money to porn actors for extramarital sex could have the unwavering support of the religious right.

We’re going to talk about that today with investigative journalist–Katherine Stewart  author of the new book THE POWER WORSHIPPERS: INSIDE THE DANGEROUS RISE OF RELIGIOUS NATIONALISM (Bloomsbury; March 2020),

But first, four listener comments about yesterday’s discussion of Bernie Sanders partial praise of Cuba’s former leader Fidel Castro for creating better education and health care in Cuba.

Tape

Polls show that the most reliable supporters of President Trump are Christian evangelicals. Why are they devoted to a man who has a checkered moral history and who often has used four letter words in front of crowds at his campaign rallies? Joining us now is investigative reporter Katherine Stewart who has been covering the Religious Right for several years. Her latest book is THE POWER WORSHIPPERS. Stewart spent more than a decade interviewing Christian nationalist leaders and activists around the country, attending dozens of their gatherings, and digging into the work of the hyper-conservative theologians that provide the movement’s philosophical underpinnings

THE POWER WORSHIPPERS: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism

Author of recent NYT piece: Bill Barr Thinks America Is Going to Hell