(Photo: APA/Jim Lo Scalzo)

Evangelicals and Trump – lessons from the Nixon era

Randall J. Stephens

The Conversation

More than 81% of the US’s protestant evangelicals voted for Donald Trump in the 2016 election. A year and a half into his presidency, they seem as dedicated to him as ever – and just as ready to make excuses for his decidedly un-Christian misdeeds.

Many Christian rightists, among them “family values” foghorn James Dobson, consider Trump a “baby Christian”. His lewd and predatory comments about women are simply the mark of a very imperfect man. Any of his actions, no matter how debased or inhumane, are dismissed or approved by the faithful.

On June 14 the attorney general, Jeff Sessions, used scripture to back up Trump’s cruel policies on refugees, which are currently tearing families apart along the southern border. Now, through the alchemy of political tribalism, the former casino owner, who once starred in a softcore porn film and who confessed on the radio to multiple affairs, is a Man of God who speaks his mind with confidence, however deep his ignorance. (Read more)

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(Photo: Doug Mills/The New York Times)

Trump’s Iran Decision Sends North Korea a Signal. Was It the Right One?

Motoko Rich

New York Times

In announcing his decision to exit the Iran nuclear accord, President Trump said he also wanted to send a signal about the kind of hard bargain he plans to drive with another longtime American adversary, North Korea.

Many analysts in Asia greeted the move with skepticism, however, saying it would instead jeopardize the goals of a planned summit meeting between Mr. Trump and North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un.

By withdrawing from the Iran deal, analysts said, Mr. Trump has proved the United States to be an untrustworthy negotiating partner that cannot be counted on to honor any agreement.

“Only a fool would trust the US to keep its word in a rogue state nuke deal now,” Robert E. Kelly, a professor of political science at Pusan National University in South Korea, wrote on Twitter. (Read more)

 

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