In view of Donald Trump’s mounting legal issues — and especially the prospect that he may be charged with criminal conduct — we should ponder his continued popularity with people who call themselves “evangelical” followers of Jesus, or to be more specific, white “evangelical Christian” followers of Jesus.
According to news media accounts, agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation seized (that is the appropriate legal term) 11 sets of documents — including some marked as “classified/TS/SCI” — during a search (that is the appropriate legal term) of Trump’s West Palm Beach, Fla., residence known as Mar-a-Lago on Aug. 5. TS/SCI is abbreviation for “top secret/sensitive compartmented information.”
The FBI is a criminal investigative agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. What FBI agents did on Aug. 5 at Mar-a-Lago was a search conducted pursuant to a warrant issued by a federal magistrate judge who reviewed sworn affidavits or recorded testimony. The warrant authorized FBI agents to “search and seize” property because the magistrate judge was satisfied that there was probable cause to believe that evidence of crime(s) would be found at Mar-a-Lago.
Wendell Griffen
The Aug. 5 search of Mar-a-Lago was not a “fishing expedition.” It was not a “raid.” It was a search for evidence of crime(s). The items discovered by FBI agents in the Aug. 5 search were “seized” because Donald Trump did not consent to producing and delivering them after federal agents previously requested that he do so.
No one should be surprised that Trump and his followers have loudly criticized the search and seizure of documents from Mar-a-Lago. Trump is the subject of a federal criminal investigation. Subjects of criminal investigations typically complain when law enforcement officers search their premises, find material considered evidence of a crime, and seize it. Trump’s complaints are merely an effort to cast himself in a favorable light with his followers and demonize federal investigators.
Federal laws prohibit unauthorized possession of classified information and material. Federal laws prohibit misuse of classified information and material. Federal laws prohibit unauthorized possession and retention of government records. Federal investigators and prosecutors are now studying the material seized from Mar-a-Lago to determine what evidence applies to the specific laws.
After they complete their reviews, federal prosecutors will present evidence to a federal grand jury along with any arguments that Trump and/or other persons be indicted (charged). If the grand jury votes to issue an indictment, Trump and other charged persons will be brought before a federal judge, arraigned on the indictment, and enter a formal plea to each charge. Then the world will watch and wait to see whether federal prosecutors can prove beyond reasonable doubt that Trump and other charged persons are guilty of the charges.
Trump’s political cheerleaders in the Republican Party complain that Attorney General Merrick Garland owes Congress an explanation for searching and seizing evidence of crime(s) at Mar-a-Lago. Information and evidence obtained in a criminal investigation is protected from public disclosure to protect the due process rights of possible suspects and to protect confidential sources. The time to disclose that information, if it is disclosed, is during trials after charges have been filed.
“Their complaints about the search warrant and seizure of potential evidence prove that they are more loyal to Trump than to the law and its enforcement.”
Garland owes Congress no explanation for seeking a search warrant, let alone seizing things FBI agents found during the search that constitute evidence of crime(s). Trump’s cheerleaders know that criminal trials are conducted by judges, not legislators. Their complaints about the search warrant and seizure of potential evidence prove that they are more loyal to Trump than to the law and its enforcement.
It is apparent that Donald Trump is suspected to have violated those laws. If charged and convicted of doing so, Trump could be sentenced to imprisonment and ordered to pay substantial fines. He also could be banned from public office for the rest of his lifetime.
A different group of federal criminal investigators are interviewing witnesses and reviewing information and material to determine whether to seek a federal indictment against Trump for his conduct surrounding the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2022. Depending on their findings, federal prosecutors may seek to indict Trump on criminal charges surrounding that incident.
The prosecutor for Fulton County, Ga., and Georgia investigators are interviewing witnesses and reviewing information to determine whether to seek an indictment against Trump for his attempt to influence Georgia election officials to manipulate the popular vote tally for presidential candidates after the November 2020 general election. Depending on their findings, the Fulton County prosecutor (Fani Willis) may seek to indict Trump for criminal violation of state election laws.
A fourth criminal investigation concerning Trump has been under way since fall 2021 in New York County, N.Y. State investigators have interviewed witnesses, and state prosecutors have been reviewing information to determine whether to seek an indictment against Trump based on suspicion that he may have committed criminal fraud in his financial dealings. It remains to be seen if Alvin Bragg, the district attorney for New York County, will seek an indictment against Trump.
It may seem strange that people who claim to be “evangelical Christian conservatives” remain loyal to Donald Trump despite knowing he is a subject — and perhaps the leading subject — in four ongoing federal and state criminal investigations. It does seem bizarre that people who claim to be followers of Jesus are diehard supporters of someone long recognized as unethical in his business dealings, unprincipled in his political actions, and cruel in his personal and social interactions.
“Trump says and does what they believe and desire to say and do.”
The best explanation for the loyalty of “evangelical Christian conservatives” to Donald Trump is that those persons are part of what I term “the hateful faithful.” The “hateful faithful” share Trump’s racism and white supremacy, capitalist greed, misogyny and sexism, authoritarianism and love of violence. Trump says and does what they believe and desire to say and do. “The hateful faithful” oppose federal power being used to defend the rights and lives of women, indigenous, Black, Latinx, and Asian persons, LGBTQ persons, immigrants and anyone else they consider “others.”
“Evangelical Christian conservative” people in “the hateful faithful” were Trump’s most reliable supporters when he ran for president in 2016. They campaigned for Trump and cast their votes for him in 2016 despite his record for commercial underhandedness. They did so with knowledge about Trump’s racism, misogyny and sexism. In 2020, “evangelical Christian conservatives” were even more energetic in their support for Trump despite his record for deceitful statements and oppressive behaviors.
Why? The best evidence shows that “evangelical Christian conservative” preachers, religious educators, and other “hateful faithful” Trump supporters relish the power they enjoyed during Trump’s presidency. They relish the power to hate Black, indigenous and other people of color without apology, relish the power to practice greed without shame, and relish the power to practice violence with impunity.
“These people view Donald Trump, not Jesus, as their role model.”
These people view Donald Trump, not Jesus, as their role model. They may be considered political conservatives. However, we should denounce their claim to be “evangelical” or “Christian.” They are “faithful” to Trump’s brand of hatefulness, fearmongering and greed, not to the love and justice ethics of Jesus. Trump’s “hateful faithful” followers are practicing religious-based fascism and nationalism, not the gospel of Jesus.
Jesus was not a white supremacist, misogynist or a sociopath. Jesus was not a religious fascist and nationalist. Jesus was not greedy, vicious or deceitful. Jesus rejected efforts to turn his prophetic ministry into a ploy for self-aggrandizement and political power.
There is a stark moral and ethical difference between the life and ministry of Jesus and the life and career of Donald Trump. We are correct to term people who believe in and support Donald Trump as his followers. However, it is blasphemous, heretical, and fraudulent to call them “evangelical” and “Christian.”
Wendell Griffen is an Arkansas circuit judge and pastor of New Millennium Church in Little Rock, Ark.
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