'Close the borders'

The NFL is getting all weird on us … It’s been another entertaining season of football‚ I think we would all agree with that (though December has been a bit hectic as a Miami Dolphins fan‚ per usual)‚ but we’ve got some problems going on with the NFL that just can’t be ignored. It all […]

'This is a primary. This isn't a general election'

'Well‚ I can't tell you that really. I mean‚ I know who it's going to be'

GOP presidential hopefuls Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley are back on the debate stage Monday night to appeal to voters just five days before the Iowa caucuses.  Former President Donald Trump was the only other primary candidate to meet the 10% polling benchmark to qualify for the debate‚ but as with the previous four debates‚ he declined to participate. Instead‚ Trump will appear on a Fox News town hall in Iowa at the same time. CNN is hosting the debate at Drake University in Des Moines‚ Iowa‚ starting at 9 p.m. EST. CNN anchors Jake Tapper and Dana Bash are moderating the debate.  Neither former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie nor entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy qualified for the debate‚ and Christie formally withdrew from the race Wednesday‚ just hours before the debate was to begin.  “It’s clear to me tonight that there isn’t a path for me to win the nomination‚” Christie said during an event Wednesday in Windham‚ New Hampshire.  Though Ramaswamy won’t be on the stage‚ viewers of the debate will reportedly have the opportunity to see him in a paid ad during the program.  Fox News exclusively reported Wednesday that Ramaswamy will run a campaign ad during the debate telling viewers to “turn this s— off” and accusing the “mainstream media” of “trying to rig the Iowa GOP caucus in favor of the corporate candidates who they can control.”  Ramaswamy also hosted a town hall live Wednesday night with podcast host Tim Pool. Trump continues to hold a sizable lead in the polls‚ with Haley and DeSantis trading places for second or third place‚ depending upon the poll.  The following are highlights from the final debate before the Iowa caucuses on Jan. 15.  UPDATE: 9:52: Weaponization of the DOJ DeSantis stressed the importance of ending “the weaponization of government.”  “The IRS has been weaponized against conservatives going back to the Obama administration‚” he explained. “I was there for that. No one has been held accountable for doing that. You look at the Federal Bureau of Investigation‚ the Department of Justice. The weaponization of federal power ends the day I become the president of the United States. “There is going to be a new sheriff in town‚” he added. “We’re going to restore the constitutional accountability that our Founding Fathers envisioned when they formatted the Constitution.”  The Florida governor said that he often speaks with “folks” who deal with “overbearing federal agencies‚” promising to not only “reduce the size of government‚” but also “to reduce the scope of government.” “And in Florida‚ I’ve actually delivered on this‚” he added. “Florida has the lowest percentage of state government workers per capita in the country‚ and the cost of our state government employees is the lowest in the country. No wonder why we’re paying down debt while we’re cutting taxes for people. That’s the way you do it.” UPDATE 9:50 p.m.: DeSantis touted dropping the sales tax on family items. “I also think it’s important that we lift people up‚ so in Florida‚ we eliminated all sales tax on every baby item‚ diapers‚ wipes‚ strollers‚ cribs‚” he said. “We want families to be able to prosper in this country.” He lamented the “breakdown in the American family‚” and said‚ “We need to make it easier for people to raise children in this country.” Last May‚ DeSantis signed a $2.7 billion tax cut bill that permanently exempted baby and toddler necessities from sales taxes. According to his office‚ the bill included a permanent exemption for strollers‚ cribs‚ diapers‚ and baby wipes.  The law‚ HB 7063‚ exempts baby cribs‚ including baby playpens‚ baby play yards; baby strollers; baby safety gates; baby monitors; child safety cabinet locks and latches‚ and electrical socket covers; bicycle child-carrier seats; baby exercisers; breast pumps; baby wipes; changing tables and changing pads; diapers; baby and toddler clothing; and more. DeSantis touts his pro-family tax policy: "In Florida‚ we eliminated all sales tax on every baby item‚ diapers‚ wipes‚ strollers‚ cribs." He lamented "the breakdown in the American family. We need to make it easier for people to raise children in this family." #GOPDebate pic.twitter.com/maIyVAoQho— Tyler O'Neil (@Tyler2ONeil) January 11‚ 2024 UPDATE 9:40: America must end all “normal trade relations with China‚” Haley said‚ until fentanyl stops flowing from China to the drug cartels who smuggle it to America.  Haley claimed that Trump “didn’t deal with China when it came to stealing intellectual property‚ the fact they gave us [COVID-19]‚ the fact that they have gone and continued to put up Chinese police stations and continue to threaten our military.”  DeSantis fired back‚ saying‚ “When Nikki Haley was governor of South Carolina‚ she was the No. 1 governor in America for Republicans of bringing China into her state.” The Florida governor claimed that Haley has said China is a friend to America and argued that “bringing China into the state of South Carolina” was Haley’s “No. 1 achievement as governor.” “I banned China from buying land in our state‚ and we kicked them out of our universities‚” DeSantis said of his policies in Florida‚ a reference to Confucius Institutes. Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post DeSantis vs. Haley: Takeaways From Final GOP Debate Before Iowa Caucuses appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Russia Still Playing Games Along the Border with Finland

Inquiring Minds Want to Know: Prosecutor‚ Prosecutor - Did You Do the Fani-Dango?

NY Gov Declares War on Shoplifters

Just yesterday‚ we called out Joe Scarborough's false-modesty shtick of describing himself as "a simple country lawyer."Today‚ Scarborough exposed just what a sham that shtick is‚ as he revealed himself as a typical elitist snob. The show devoted a segment to Donald Trump's case before the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in which he argues that he is immune from criminal prosecution for acts performed while president. In predicting that the court will make short shrift of Trump's case‚ Scarborough said: "George Conway‚ where does this end? Do you think‚ as Chuck [Rosenberg‚ a former US Attorney] believes‚ that‚ that this argument is so preposterous‚ that Donald Trump's lawyers aren't going to be able to delay by getting the entire D.C. Circuit to listen‚ getting the Supreme Court to mull over it. Is this something they just sort of brush away [as seen in the screencap]‚ again‚ because it's such a laughable argument? "Also‚ it's the D.C. Circuit. I mean‚ this isn't‚ this isn't some random Circuit out in flyover space." Scarborough stopped there. But as Conway chuckled at Joe's "flyover space" gibe and began to answer‚ Joe—presumably realizing just how condescendingly elitist he had sounded—sought to cover his tracks by interjecting‚ "As the justices would call it‚ where I'm from." Scarborough's attempted clean-up was transparently absurd. And as for where you're "from‚" Joe. You might have been born in the South‚ but you've long ago transmogrified into a snob "from" Manhattan's Upper West Side‚ hyper-exclusive Westport‚ CT and Jupiter‚ FL‚ who "summers" on Nantucket.

Journalist Tim Alberta is author of The Kingdom‚ the Power‚ and the Glory: American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism‚ a book touted as the author’s “deeply personal examination of the divisions that threaten to destroy the American evangelical movement.” He’s been making the rounds of friendly liberal media outlets lamenting fear-based evangelical Christian loyalty to Donald Trump‚ and his Friday stop at PBS’s Firing Line With Margaret Hoover may have been his most over the top excoriation of all. Hoover: ….Your father was a minister of an evangelical church‚ which you grew up worshiping in. In 2019 at your father’s wake‚ members from his congregation‚ family friends‚ people who had held you as a baby‚ came up to you and chastised you for your negative reporting about Donald Trump. This brought you face to face with exactly how poisoned the evangelical church had become in the age of Donald Trump. Tell us what happened. Alberta once again relayed his admittedly infuriating story of being accosted at his father’s funeral by people who wanted to argue with him about how he covered Donald Trump. Firing Line’s Hoover set her guest up to repeat his pulpit response‚ a bitter warning about Rush Limbaugh and the dangers of talk radio. Hoover: When you responded from the pulpit‚ your response was about Rush Limbaugh. Alberta: So Rush Limbaugh had just recently‚ like a few days‚ I think‚ before the funeral‚ had been ripping me on his show. And so that for many people was a jumping-off point. I didn’t realize that my dad’s congregation was so addicted to AM talk radio‚ but apparently they were. And that was to me– I think it was like it was symptomatic of the illness here. Because from my view‚ if you are a follower of Jesus‚ if you are someone who believes in just the most fundamental teachings of Christ about loving your neighbor‚ about loving your enemy and praying for those who persecute you‚ then it’s hard to simultaneously hold to those ideals and to simultaneously be listening to Rush Limbaugh for three hours every day‚ right‚ with sort of an unceasing stream of venom and ugliness and hostility‚ antagonism‚ hatred…. This tax-funded show had no qualms about appearing completely lopsided. Hoover: Why did fear become a driver in the evangelical movement? Alberta: Let me give you a really uncomfortable answer: Because too many of these people are spending more time watching Fox News than they are reading the New Testament…. Alberta seems rather fearful himself of a second Trump presidency‚ and displayed his fear in histrionic fashion. Hoover claimed Trump’s “campaign rhetoric has gotten darker and more authoritarian‚” leading Alberta to voice his concern about a second Trump term: Alberta: ….When we look through the history books and we see this‚ this fusing of authoritarianism and religious fanaticism and more specifically‚ I would say‚ religious justification for violence‚ for conflict. When you see the merging of those two things‚ that’s when you see history’s greatest crimes‚ the great crimes against humanity: ethnic cleansing‚ genocide‚ holocaust. This is a real threat. And the idea that it could never happen here‚ that Trump-ism could not evolve into this sort of civil religion where violence and mass conflict becomes justified in the name of fighting evil with good. I mean‚ it’s the sort of thing that would have sounded totally insane eight years ago. I don’t think it’s insane anymore. Note to Alberta: It in fact does sound insane now. (Alberta did make a “plague on both their houses”-type gesture on X Tuesday‚ criticizing the partisan cheering for Biden during his visit to the Mother Emanuel AME Church in South Carolina.) A transcript is available‚ click “Expand.” Firing Line With Margaret Hoover 1/5/24 8:30:22 p.m. (ET) HOOVER: You’re out with a new book‚ The Kingdom‚ The Power‚ and the Glory‚ which is a deeply personal meditation for you and also‚ a fastidiously reported account of how the evangelical church has turned towards Christian nationalism‚ especially in the age of Donald Trump. This was personal. Your father was a minister of an evangelical church‚ which you grew up worshiping in. In 2019 at your father’s wake‚ members from his congregation‚ family friends‚ people who had held you as a baby‚ came up to you and chastised you for your negative reporting about Donald Trump. This brought you face to face with exactly how poisoned the evangelical church had become in the age of Donald Trump. Tell us what happened. ALBERTA: Yeah‚ I was still‚ I think‚ in a state of shock because you’re in this fog of melancholy and grief and trying to make sense of it. And so to suddenly have people accosting you‚ confronting you‚ wanting to argue about Trump‚ when your dad’s in a box over here. Frankly‚ it was so shocking that– and so surreal that I didn’t quite know how to respond at first. HOOVER: What was their specific criticism of you? ALBERTA: I think there is this idea that looms large in the evangelical imagination that this country is not just a country informed by Judeo-Christian ethics‚ Judeo-Christian values‚ but that it is a Christian nation‚ and that that Christian nation is in decline‚ that it’s in danger‚ and that Donald Trump has sort of stepped in as this protector of Christian America. And that if you’re criticizing Donald Trump‚ then you’re criticizing America‚ Christian America. That in other words‚ that this is all very zero sum. And so you’re either on the right side or on the wrong side. In fact‚ that’s what one person said to me at the viewing‚ like‚ are you still on the right side? HOOVER: When you responded from the pulpit‚ your response was about Rush Limbaugh. ALBERTA: Yeah. So Rush Limbaugh had just recently‚ like a few days‚ I think‚ before the funeral‚ had been ripping me on his show. And so that for many people was a jumping off point. I didn’t realize that my dad’s congregation was so addicted to AM talk radio‚ but apparently they were. And that was to me– I think it was like it was symptomatic of the illness here. Because from my view‚ if you are a follower of Jesus‚ if you are someone who believes in just the most fundamental teachings of Christ about loving your neighbor‚ about loving your enemy and praying for those who persecute you‚ then it’s hard to simultaneously hold to those ideals and to simultaneously be listening to Rush Limbaugh for three hours every day‚ right‚ with sort of an unceasing stream of venom and ugliness and hostility‚ antagonism‚ hatred. Reconciling those two things is very hard. But I think for a lot of Christians‚ far too many Christians at least‚ they’ve made peace with reconciling those two things. And that’s at the heart of the problem. HOOVER: Yeah. You say that centuries from now‚ people will pinpoint Covid-19 as one of the main drivers of change in the evangelical movement. Explain why. ALBERTA: So I think it’s very difficult for folks who are on the outside of this movement looking in who weren’t raised in it as I was‚ who don’t have deep roots in it to fully appreciate the extent to which evangelicals have been taught and promised for generations now that one day in this country there will be a cosmic clash between the forces of good and evil. That the good‚ God-fearing‚ Bible believing Christians will square off once and for all with those pagans‚ those secular progressives in government and in culture who want to eradicate the Almighty from public life. Right Margaret‚ I mean‚ that has been the message. I’ve been marinating in that since I was a toddler. So when Covid-19 arrives and some of these governors around the country‚ they issue shutdown orders implicating houses of worship‚ you know‚ that was it. That was the fulfillment of prophecy for a lot of these people. They looked around and they said‚ ‘well‚ here it is. You know‚ they told us this day would come and now it’s come.’ And the question became‚ what are you going to do about it? HOOVER: Yeah. As part of your reporting‚ you met with your father’s successor. You asked him what is wrong with evangelicals in America and his response was too many of them worship America. Explain. ALBERTA: Hmm. I think at its core‚ as he would argue and as I’ve come to be convinced myself‚ we are dealing with an idolatry problem inside of the church. I think once you become convinced that this nation is somehow in covenant with God‚ you start to think that a defeat for America is a defeat for God‚ that you start to think that fighting for America is the same as fighting for God‚ as though salvation itself hangs in the balance with every election. And that’s just‚ it’s completely abiblical. I think there’s a genuine sense for a lot of these people that when you think about the culture wars lost‚ when you think about the demographic changes in the country‚ when you think about all of the statistics about church attendance plummeting that we are at the abyss here‚ and that if something isn’t done quickly and dramatically to to pull us back from that abyss‚ then we will never recover the nation that we once were. I mean‚ I think that fear is real. HOOVER: Why did fear become a driver in the evangelical movement? ALBERTA: Let me give you a really uncomfortable answer. Because too many of these people are spending more time watching Fox News than they are reading the New Testament. One of the most– the most frequently cited command in all of scripture‚ Old Testament and New Testament‚ is “fear not.” Right? Christians are taught time and time and time again that fear is the antithesis of faith. And so the message that you get from your preacher on a Sunday morning‚ the message that you get from reading your Gospels‚ that message of faith is completely contradictory to the message of fear that you’re getting from watching Fox News every night‚ from listening to talk radio every day. Listen‚ some people will hear me say that‚ no doubt‚ and they’ll think‚ ‘well‚ wait a second. Can I be a Christian but also be an engaged citizen?’ Of course you can. Right? This is all about proportionality and about balancing where your priorities are and what your information inputs are. And it’s very difficult to be a faithful follower of Jesus if you’re getting– if 5% of your diet is biblical and 95% of it is secular it’s just‚ it’s very hard. HOOVER: So it’s the fear that allowed evangelicals to justify the leadership of somebody like Donald Trump which seems so antithetical to outsiders’ understanding of evangelicals. ALBERTA: Yeah. Well‚ look‚ I mean‚ if you believe that the barbarians are at the gates‚ then you think to yourself‚ maybe we need a barbarian to protect us. That’s Donald Trump. That’s the evangelical relationship with Donald Trump in a nutshell. I mean‚ for a lot of these people‚ and I just can’t emphasize it enough‚ I mean‚ these themes that we’re discussing here of fear and grievance and persecution‚ right– Not just that the country doesn’t look the same as it used to‚ but that the country is coming for us. You know‚ when Donald Trump gets out on the stump and says‚ “I’m your retribution‚” they hear that very differently than just the average vo— HOOVER: How do they hear it? ALBERTA: Well‚ I mean‚ look‚ you might think to yourself‚ ‘well‚ how could all‚ you know‚ the criminal indictments and‚ you know‚ found liable for sexual abuse‚ all these things. How can they support him with those things hanging over his head?’ And it’s important‚ I think‚ to recognize they’re not supporting him in spite of those things. They’re supporting him because of those things. When he says that he’s going to be your retribution‚ these are people who feel aggrieved and wronged by the culture‚ by the government that‚ you know‚ that the education system has kicked God out of the schools; that sexuality has run– the sexual ethics of the culture have run completely counter to what the country’s Judeo-Christian heritage was; you know‚ pornography‚ drug usage‚ civilizational decline. That’s what we’re dealing with here. HOOVER: Even after he was indicted numerous times‚ Donald Trump has maintained his hold on the evangelical vote. Talk about the persecution complex. ALBERTA: Well‚ it’s funny Margaret. If you think back to the 2022 midterms when Republicans badly underperformed and Donald Trump responded by throwing evangelicals under the bus‚ that was the first time his support really started to dip. And then Alvin Bragg delivered that first indictment in New York and the support went right back up. And it’s been climbing ever since. The persecution complex is psychologically at the center‚ I think‚ of our problems in the evangelical church. Which is to say that this idea that we’re on borrowed time in America‚ that the forces of secularism and progressivism‚ that they’re coming for us. And so you then start to process every political defeat‚ every cultural defeat‚ every unkind thing said about you through this lens of‚ ‘well‚ we’re being persecuted.’ HOOVER: Sarah Jones of New York Magazine‚ who‚ like you‚ grew up in an evangelical church in her review of your book‚ rejected the premise that the church can ultimately be saved. And she frankly argues there’s nothing worth salvaging. How do you respond? ALBERTA: So I think what I would say to that critique is just that we have not seen the best of the church in this country because the church in this country‚ at least for the last 50 years‚ has just been so consumed with the pursuit of political power. And that pursuit of power has corrupted the church in many ways. And we don’t know what a healthy‚ vibrant church looks like because we haven’t tried it. We as Christians‚ I think‚ have to appreciate that 50 years ago‚ unbelievers in this country‚ they liked the church. Even if they didn’t believe in the God that we believe in‚ they respected the institution of the church. They thought that socially‚ that we were good for society. And now it’s the exact opposite. They hate us. And that review speaks to that. And I think we have the responsibility now to try to demonstrate what real Christianity looks like in a culture that is desperately in need of Christ. HOOVER: The transformation of the evangelical community really is marked by the emergence of the Moral Majority. And the founder of the Moral Majority‚ Jerry Falwell‚ appeared on Firing Line with William F. Buckley Jr in 1981. Take a look at what he says here. FALWELL: I feel when one aspires to a place of public leadership – a congressman‚ a president‚ governor – I think like a priest or a pastor or a rabbi‚ he is aspiring to lead the people and people are going to emulate his lifestyle or her lifestyle. And I think that we have an obligation to go a step beyond the average person because in leadership more is demanded of us. HOOVER: “In leadership more is demanded of us.” I know you write extensively about Jerry Falwell‚ Jerry Falwell Jr.‚ Liberty University‚ his own failings. While he preached this message‚ he didn’t live up to his own standard. ALBERTA: That’s the irony. Jerry Falwell Senior in that clip‚ he’s speaking to a biblical doctrine that is true and that is right. The irony is that had he lived by that doctrine‚ had his movement lived by that doctrine‚ then we wouldn’t be in this mess that we’re in today. And it’s tragic. HOOVER: Prominent evangelical leaders‚ Russell Moore‚ even in Iowa‚ Bob Vander Plaats stood up to Donald Trump in 2016. But their perspective didn’t make a dent in evangelical voters’ views of Donald Trump. Are there any voices‚ – and put your political hat on‚ your political reporting hat on. Are there any evangelical leaders who could catalyze the evangelical voting bloc against Trump? ALBERTA: No. HOOVER: Explain why. ALBERTA: Because it’s the evangelical leaders who created this monster in the first place. I mean‚ let me – HOOVER: This monster being Donald Trump? ALBERTA: Yeah. I mean‚ it’s easy to forget now‚ but when Donald Trump ran for president in 2016‚ evangelical Christians were his softest group of supporters. There was a lot of suspicion of him‚ a lot of skepticism. He really had to work hard to earn their votes. That’s why he put Mike Pence on the ticket. That’s why he released the list of Supreme Court nominees and promised to pick pro-life Supreme Court justices. All of that was meant to assuage the concerns of those voters. But take it a step further‚ Margaret. In the summer of 2016‚ as he’s courting these people‚ Donald Trump gathers about 500 prominent evangelical leaders in New York City at a Marriott‚ and they have this daylong conference. And Franklin Graham‚ Jerry Falwell Jr.‚ Mike Huckabee‚ a number of these prominent high profile evangelical leaders‚ they take turns getting up on stage and vouching for Trump‚ vouching for his character. In other words‚ not just saying‚ oh‚ you know‚ listen‚ this is a binary choice‚ lesser of two evils. You know‚ we need to hold our nose and vote for the pro-life candidate. No‚ no‚ no. This was‚ ‘God uses flawed people throughout the Bible to advance his purposes. How is this guy any different than King David or King Solomon‚ or Moses even?’ I mean‚ I was there that day and I heard comparisons to Moses. That’s how far some of these folks were willing to go. Well‚ you fast forward eight years. Some of those same people privately are horrified of Donald Trump. They know how dangerous he is‚ but they’ve locked themselves into this position now where even if they came out today‚ all of them locking arms and denouncing him and saying‚ never mind‚ we were wrong‚ please forgive us for what we said‚ the people wouldn’t listen because they’ve already they’ve already made their judgments on him. HOOVER: After the midterm elections‚ Trump cast blame on  Republican losses and the lack of a Republican red wave into Congress on the pro-life movement‚ rather than on himself‚ and the strategy around Republicans and how they handled the issue of abortion. And you write that many evangelicals were angry at Trump. Yet Mike Pence‚ an evangelical himself‚ Senator Tim Scott‚ an evangelical himself‚ even Ron DeSantis‚ none of them have earned the support of evangelicals. Why? ALBERTA: I think for 50 years‚ abortion was used as the chief mobilizer for millions and millions of evangelical Christians. Abortion is no longer this great galvanizing issue for Republican primary voters in the way that it once was. In other words‚ if you’re Mike Pence‚ if you’re Tim Scott‚ if you’re Ron DeSantis and you’re campaigning on the issue of abortion‚ at a presidential level‚ a lot of voters now might tune you out and say‚ ‘well‚ okay‚ yeah‚ but you’re not going to sign a law on that. It’s not going to be debated in Congress. This is now at the states. So what else do you got?’ Right? So I think for a lot of these Republican voters‚ a lot of these evangelical primary voters‚ now‚ they push abortion to the side and say‚ okay‚ well‚ what is our priority? I think for many of them‚ the priority is what we’ve been discussing‚ which is who’s going to protect Christianity in America? Who is willing to stand up and fight against our enemies in the culture? You know‚ the education curriculum‚ the transgender issue‚ critical race theory. If that’s your belief‚ then you are looking for the person who can fight back against it. And Donald Trump checks that box in ways that Ron DeSantis‚ Mike Pence‚ Tim Scott‚ Nikki Haley‚ these people could never dream of because none of them are willing to say the things that Donald Trump is willing to say. I mean‚ just the other day‚ Donald Trump is out there campaigning‚ talking about how he’s not going– maybe he’s not going to let non-Christians into the country anymore. And this is the sort of thing that we’ve become desensitized‚ we’ve become numb to the things that Donald Trump says and does. But if you’re wondering‚ well‚ if theocracy comes to America‚ if the wall between church and state gets demolished‚ then how does it start? Well‚ it probably starts like this. It probably starts with a strongman leader taking all of the authoritarian impulses over here‚ merging it with all of the religious zealotry over here‚ combining the two‚ and having a movement of people behind him who believe that he’s an instrument of the Almighty to accomplish God’s will on earth‚ no matter how flawed he is. HOOVER: Iowa is upon us. You’ve covered presidential races now for many years. You’ve covered Donald Trump for eight years. How do you see Iowa going? ALBERTA: I believe in miracles‚ and I think it’s going to take one for any of these other Republicans to defeat Donald Trump in Iowa‚ for any of these other Republicans to defeat Donald Trump in New Hampshire‚ ultimately for any of these other Republicans to prevent Donald Trump from winning the nomination‚ because of Donald Trump’s chokehold on that evangelical vote. HOOVER: An influential piece that you published after January 6th was about Nikki Haley. You wrote that she told you‚ quote‚ “We shouldn’t have followed him”‚ meaning Donald Trump. “We shouldn’t have listened to him. And we can’t ever let that happen again.” Today‚ Nikki Haley is running against Donald Trump‚ but she is loath to criticize him explicitly. And you say that Haley has the ability to shapeshift and morph. Which Nikki Haley have you observed on the campaign trail? ALBERTA: The one that I’ve seen on the campaign trail I think is the one who’s trying to be everything to just about everyone. So she’s not going to say what she really thinks about Trump. So it’s a strange campaign to watch in many ways because her natural political abilities are such that she’s able to draw big crowds and give good speeches and perform really well in these debates just by virtue of what a good political athlete she is. But I think the question for her heading into this campaign‚ is‚ if you’re going to run‚ wouldn’t you rather just run‚ win or lose‚ let the chips fall where they may‚ being the most authentic version of yourself. And I think at some level‚ the problem for Nikki Haley is that the Republican Party as it’s constituted today‚ is not a party that is a great match for the authentic version of Nikki Haley. So it’s honestly like watching a tragedy play out in slow motion‚ her campaign. HOOVER: You referenced Donald Trump’s rhetoric about retribution. His campaign rhetoric has gotten darker and more authoritarian. He’s recently joked that he would behave like a dictator on day one. You’ve said that many are still underestimating what a second Trump term could mean. How seriously should people take Donald Trump’s promises? ALBERTA: What concerns me is that Donald Trump in his second term would be surrounded by a lot of folks who truly view politics as a proxy for good and evil. There is kind of an apocalyptic zero sum zeal that infects a lot of these folks who are close to Trump now and who would be surrounding him in a second term. When we look through the history books and we see this‚ this fusing of authoritarianism and religious fanaticism and more specifically‚ I would say‚ religious justification for violence‚ for conflict. When you see the merging of those two things‚ that’s when you see history’s greatest crimes‚ the great crimes against humanity: ethnic cleansing‚ genocide‚ holocaust. This is a real threat. And the idea that it could never happen here‚ that Trump-ism could not evolve into this sort of civil religion where violence and mass conflict becomes justified in the name of fighting evil with good. I mean‚ it’s the sort of thing that would have sounded totally insane eight years ago. I don’t think it’s insane anymore. HOOVER: It sounds like you’re preparing yourself for the probability that Trump will reclaim the Republican nomination. If that’s the case‚ where does that leave evangelicals and the Church? ALBERTA: Where I hope it leaves evangelicals is wandering into a place of political homelessness. And what I mean by that is just this idea that our identity as followers of Jesus is in any way‚ shape or form attached to our identity as partisan Republicans is so profoundly wrong and does such a disservice to the Gospel of Jesus Christ that I hope that there is an awakening here in the evangelical world‚ that we do not put our faith in mortal men. We do not put our faith in princes‚ in kings. If you claim to follow Jesus‚ if that is your identity‚ then it doesn’t matter who wins the next election. As my dad used to say from the pulpit‚ “God does not bite his fingernails.” And if you’re a follower of Jesus you really shouldn’t be biting your fingernails either.