Evangelicals And Trump – Lessons From The Nixon Era

“Baby Christian” Donald Trump addresses the faithful. (EPA/Jim Lo Scalzo)

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.

But today’s evangelical leaders should be wary of hitching their wagon to an amoral, corrupt president. They could learn a thing or two from their predecessors, who aligned themselves closely with another troublesome president: Richard Nixon, whose malfeasance eventually became too much for the Christian right to tolerate. When the depth of Trump’s misconduct is established, will his prayer warrior enthusiasts have to rethink their allegiance?

For now, the love affair continues. In May 2018, First Baptist Dallas pastor, Robert Jeffress,, proclaimed on Fox News that the vast majority of his fellow believers hoped their candidate would win again in 2020. Trump has reciprocated by waxing pious at prayer breakfasts about the glories and mercies of God. His staunchly evangelical vice president, Mike Pence, assures Americans that “there’s prayer going on on a regular basis in this White House”. Pence recently delivered a Trumpian, campaign-style address at a meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, America’s largest Protestant denomination.

Trump hagiographies are rolling off the presses: The Faith of Donald J. Trump, God and Donald Trump, The Trump Prophecies. The latter is being adapted into a film with the help of fundamentalist bastion Liberty University.

Trump iconographer and right-wing Mormon Jon McNaughton, who once depicted a resolute Barack Obama with the Constitution under his foot, has created a series of kitsch classics rendering Trump as a cross between prophet, priest and king. Perhaps one day in the not-so-distant future the artist will paint The Apotheosis of The Donald for the capitol rotunda.

What about the president’s habitual lying? His sordid past? His bragging and bullying? His demonising of refugees? His lawer’s payment of US$130,000 in alleged hush money to a porn star? Influential evangelist Franklin Graham recently said that Trump’s alleged affair with Stormy Daniels happened many years ago. It didn’t matter now.

In March 2018, the Pew Research Center reported that white evangelical support for Trump stood at 78%, a figure that had actually grown since news about Daniels broke. Democrats, progressive Christians, and the media hated Trump. That was reason enough for many others to support him.

Anyhow, said Graham: “I don’t think that he came to be president by mistake or by happenstance. I think somehow God put him in this position.” And Graham was even more assured when Trump told him that his father, Fred Trump, had taken him to an evangelistic crusade held by Graham’s own father, Billy.

Common cause
Perhaps the most famous and influential revivalist of the 20th century, Billy Graham preached a simple message of repentance and salvation. Though he claimed to stay away from politics, he was in fact deeply political, and a close confidant of presidents Eisenhower, Johnson, Nixon and Reagan.

During the 1960 presidential campaign, Graham and his fellow travellers were faced with the possibility that John F. Kennedy, a Catholic and a Democrat, would be the next president. They rallied behind Richard Nixon – and stayed behind him for years.

Like Graham, many white evangelicals in the late 1960s and early 1970s found in Nixon a strong, powerful man who boldly stood up to liberal politicians, civil rights agitators and amoral student activists. When the president championed the “silent majority” on national television, they were heartened that such a Christian leader would speak for them. Nixon signalled that they were the true victims in the heated political and cultural battles of the age.

Richard Nixon with Billy Graham. (Wikimedia Commons)

Nixon won 69% of the evangelical vote in his successful 1968 bid, and he instituted regular White House religious services at the start of his presidency. The president’s call for “law and order” also inspired the faithful. The head of the National Association of Evangelicals endorsed the Republican president in 1972, praising Nixon’s Cold War policies. 84% of evangelicals cast their votes for Nixon that year.

Their affinity lasted for most of Nixon’s doomed presidency. Graham’s private conversations with Nixon, recorded by a secret White House taping system, revealed the extent of the preacher’s partisanship and his willingness to encourage the president’s many prejudices and burning grudges. On February 10, 1972, Graham listened intently as the commander-in-chief railed against Jews and their overpowering influence. America’s pastor replied that “this stranglehold has got to be broken or the country’s going down the drain”. Nixon sympathised: “I can’t ever say that, but I believe it.”

Keeping the faith
But the following year, the scandal over the Watergate break-in and subsequent cover-up dominated headlines and nightly TV news. Like other right-wing partisans, conservative Christians tried to brush it aside, but they could only ignore the obvious for so long – when it came down to it, their political hero was a squalid criminal. When Graham finally heard the profanity-laced Watergate tapes, he reportedly vomited.

Quite a few evangelicals, though disillusioned, didn’t really come to grips with the deeper meaning of it all, responding with a kind of born-again dodge.

Graham reckoned that Watergate was a symptom of a deeper, national moral problem. He wondered if Americans should have prayed more for their president. “There’s a little bit of Watergate in all of us,” Graham cautioned. Some – like the fundamentalist minister and Christian right political broker Jerry Falwell – continued to revere the disgraced former president. In the years after Nixon’s 1974 resignation, evangelicals voted Republican in growing numbers.

Will Trump’s solid, evangelical base ever come to terms with the kind of person they voted into office? Will there be a reckoning in the coming months and years that will open their eyes to his cynical manipulations, his divisive, culture-war grandstanding, his philandering, or repeated lying? It’s difficult to say. But if the past is any guide, the answer is a resounding no.

About Today's Contributor:
Randall J. Stephens, Associate Professor and Reader in History and American Studies, Northumbria University, Newcastle

This article was originally published on The Conversation. 

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Bonus Pictures:

(Via Trumpton Facebook Page)

New CAIR Report: Trump's Muslim Bans Increased Anti-Muslim Discrimination, Violence

CAIR’s 2018 civil rights report (image via CAIR)

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today released a one-of-its-kind report offering data on the impact and legal pushback against anti-Muslim bias across the United States in the past year.

• Video: CAIR News Conference to Release 2018 Civil Rights Report
• CAIR 2018 Civil Rights Report: Targeted 
• Video: CAIR's 2018 Civil Rights Report Offers Data on Impact of Growing Anti-Muslim Bias

CAIR's 2018 civil rights report finds that federal government agencies have instigated more than a third of all anti-Muslim bias incidents in 2017. Of these, 464 incidents were related to the Trump administration's unconstitutional "Muslim Ban" executive orders. The new report, titled "Targeted," also shows a 17 percent increase in anti-Muslim bias incidents and a 15 percent increase in hate crimes in 2017 over the previous year. 

"Not only have anti-Muslim bias incidents continued to increase, but a greater percentage of these instances have been violent in nature, targeting American children, youth and families who are Muslim or perceived to be Muslim," said CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad.

"CAIR's 2018 Civil Rights Report provides concrete evidence that the unconstitutional Muslim Ban resulted in more Islamophobic hate and violence," said CAIR Research and Advocacy Coordinator Zainab Arain, author of the report. "The anti-Muslim hate incidents documented in CAIR's report are an indictment of the Trump administration and its unconstitutional and divisive policies."  

The most frequent types of incidents documented by CAIR in 2017 involved:  

• Harassment, a non-violent or non-threatening incident of bias, at 14 percent of cases.  
• Incidents in which the complainant was inappropriately targeted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), accounting for 13 percent of cases.  
• Hate crimes, including physical violence targeting individuals and damage targeting property, making up 12 percent.  
• Cases in which the FBI harassed or otherwise inappropriately targeted the complainant, constituting 10 percent.
•  Employment discrimination — including denial of work, being passed over for promotion, or harassment by a supervisor or other senior staff — accounting for 9 percent.  

The most prevalent triggering factor of an anti-Muslim bias incident in 2017 was the victim's ethnicity or national origin, accounting for 32 percent of the total. The second most frequent trigger was the perpetrator's perception of an individual as a Muslim – irrespective of the presence or not of an identifying marker such as attire. This trigger constituted 14 percent of the total cases. A head scarf on a woman was the trigger in 13 percent of incidents. The Muslim Ban executive orders made up the fourth most frequent trigger, at 10 percent. 

The report dataset is drawn primarily from the intakes CAIR conducts each year. With each case, CAIR's civil rights and legal staff seek to ensure the highest possible level of accuracy.  

CAIR said it has witnessed an unprecedented spike in bigotry targeting American Muslims and members of other minority groups since the election of Donald Trump as president and his appointment of Islamophobic advisers and cabinet members.

• CAIR: John Bolton Chaired Anti-Muslim Think Tank (NBC)
• Video: CAIR, Muslim, Arab-American, Asian-American, Anti-Torture Groups to Urge Rejection of Pompeo's Confirmation as Secretary of State

⏩ Community members are being urged to report any bias incidents to police and to CAIR's Civil Rights Department at 202-742-6420 or by filing a report at: www.cair.com/report  
   

⏩ CAIR launched an app to share critical "know your rights" information and to simplify the process to report hate crimes and bias incidents. CAIR is urging American Muslims and members of other minority groups to download the app and utilize this resource to stay informed and empowered.

⏩ For a quick download of CAIR's civil rights app, click here ⏪

“No Ban No Wall. Sanctuary for All.”  (image via CAIR)

About CAIR: 

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.

La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.

SOURCE: Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)

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• CAIR Calls on Feds to Probe Call to Violence Against U.S. Muslims at N.C. Meeting of Hate Groups

CAIR Calls for FEC and IRS Probes of Anti-Muslim Ads Backed by Trump Supporter and Targeting Voters in Swing States

Robert Mercer backed a secretive group that worked with Facebook, Google to target anti-Muslim ads at swing voters (image via OpenSecrets.org)

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today called for Federal Election Commission (FEC) and IRS investigations of virulently anti-Muslim advertisements that used Facebook and Google to target voters in swing states prior just before the 2016 election.

Robert Mercer, a top supporter of President Trump, reportedly spent $2 million to help fund the group behind Islamophobic video ad, titled "Welcome to the Islamic States of America," which featured the "Hollywood" sign replaced with the Islamic phrase "Allahu Akbar" (God is Great) and the Statue of Liberty wearing a burka. In the video, St. Paul's Chapel in Manhattan is shown with an Islamic star and crescent and Sports Illustrated magazine becomes "Sharia Law Illustrated."

Mercer was a top donor – giving some $2 million -- for Secure America Now, the shadowy group that produced the ads. The group told the IRS it only spent $124,192 on political activities, while reporting more than $1 million in political spending to the FEC in 2016.

"While these bigoted ads did not mention a specific candidate, it does not take a brain surgeon to realize that there was only one presidential candidate that based his campaign on anti-Muslim fear-mongering," said CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad. "We urge the FEC and IRS to investigate whether these clandestine ads violated federal election or tax laws."

He noted that former top White House strategist Stephen Bannon, who ran Mercer's white supremacist and anti-Muslim Breitbart site, once wrote a film script that warned of America turning into the "Islamic States of America."

CAIR said it has witnessed an unprecedented spike in bigotry targeting American Muslims and members of other minority groups since the election of Donald Trump as president. The Washington-based civil rights organization has also repeatedly expressed concern about Islamophobic and racist Trump administration policies and appointments.

Community members are being urged to report any bias incidents to police and to CAIR's Civil Rights Department at 202-742-6420 or by filing a report at: www.cair.com/report   

CAIR launched an app to share critical "know your rights" information and to simplify the process to report hate crimes and bias incidents. CAIR is urging American Muslims and members of other minority groups to download the app and utilize this resource to stay informed and empowered.

⏩ For a quick download of CAIR's civil rights app, click here ⏪

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, and empower American Muslims. 

La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.

Related Stories:

• EXCLUSIVE: Robert Mercer backed a secretive group that worked with Facebook, Google to target anti-Muslim ads at swing voters
• Bannon film outline warned U.S. could turn into 'Islamic States of America'
• CAIR Condemns Naming of Islamophobe John Bolton as White House National Security Adviser
• CAIR Opposes Nominations of 'Islamophobe' Pompeo for Secretary of State, 'Torturer' Haspel for CIA Director

SOURCE: Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)

Raelians Starting Negotiations With First Country To Consider Hosting An Embassy For Extraterrestrials

ET embassy landing pad

Thousands of Raelians worldwide will hold public events on March 31st – day that founder and spiritual leader of the Raelian Movement, Rael, declared "ET Embassy Day," in order to raise awareness about their major project: the building of an Embassy to welcome an extraterrestrial civilization to earth. 

"This year is very special,'' said Raelian Guide Daniel Turcotte, Rael's assistant for the ET Embassy Project. ''Up until now, several countries had shown a genuine interest for this very auspicious project, but this year, for the first time, a country has invited Raelian representatives to discuss this unique and enthusiastic project.'' 

"This week, the host country candidate has been handed an optional protocol to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, provisionally titled the "Optional Protocol Concerning Embassies for Extraterrestrials," explained Turcotte. "The meeting also addressed the possibility for this country to hold the first international conference to discuss this protocol." 

Turcotte explained that the country granting a land, the necessary extraterritoriality, and the authorization for the ET Embassy to be built within its territory will not only benefit financially, but will also become the spiritual and scientific center of the planet for millennia to come, and happiness will prevail within its borders.

''Welcoming an extraterrestrial civilization isn't a mere fantasy the way it was viewed as in the 70s when Rael created the Raelian Movement with the mission of building an Embassy to welcome them," added Turcotte. "Since then, thousands of planets have been discovered including some with an atmosphere and all the necessary elements to sustain life. Not to mention that scientists now agree that the probability of intelligent life outside our solar system is very high, and millions of people have seen UFOs and know that an extraterrestrial civilization is showing interest in us, thus confirming this probability."

"The conditions for the general population to accept the idea of an official welcome are met, but violence on our planet is still so high that we need the wisdom of those who created us and who want to meet us again more than ever," concluded Turcotte.

ET embassy - scale model

Raelians believe that an extraterrestrial civilization created all life on Earth including human beings, and they believe it is a very peaceful and far more advanced civilization compared to ours, both scientifically and philosophically.

About Rael:

(Via rael.org)

"At the age of 27, on the morning of December 13, 1973, while he was still leading his successful racing-car magazine, RAEL had a dramatic encounter with a human being from another planet, at a volcano park in the center of France, known as "Puy de Lassolas". This extra-terrestrial gave him a new detailed explanation of our origins and information on how to organize our future, as recorded in the book: Intelligent Design. After six consecutive meetings in the same location, Rael accepted the mission given to him, to inform humanity of this revolutionary message and to prepare the population to welcome their Creators, the Elohim, without any mysticism or fear, but as conscious and grateful human beings. After a few months considering this huge task, Rael almost developed a stomach ulcer before finally deciding to give up his much loved career as a sports-car journalist and devote himself fully to the task assigned to him by Yahweh - the extra-terrestrial whom he met. Within the year following the encounter, he managed to print the book reporting about the event and appeared on two of the main TV and Radio shows in France, announcing a public conference. This first public conference held in Paris on September 19, 1974 attracted more than 2000 people. Shortly after, he founded the association MADECH - a group of people interested in helping him in his huge task- that would later become the Raelian Movement. By the end of the year 1974, the association counted 170 members. They are now more than 85,000 members in 107 countries.

On October 7th, 1975, he had a second encounter and was given additional information recorded on his second book, also part of Intelligent Design. Since that time, Rael has been touring the World, giving conferences and seminars on every continent, gathering those who share the desire to welcome our Creators.

He also authored several other books like Sensual Meditation which is a central part of his teachings, "Geniocracy" advocating for a more intelligent management of the planet and "Yes To Human Cloning" explaining the possibility of becoming eternal and the beautiful future one can expect thanks to Science.

Over the years, Rael has inspired several public actions from the promotion of the use of condoms in schools to the promotion of masturbation; from worldwide campaigns in support of minorities with the slogan "to tolerate differences is not enough, one should love differences" to the disturbing request to have all Religious books censured where they don't respect Human Rights; from the support of Human Cloning through the founding of Clonaid, to the promotion of GMO as the only chance for all human beings on Earth to have food; from the creation of Clitoraid, an association to help women who have been circumcised to have their clitoris repaired so that they can experience pleasure again to the call for the gathering of all African traditional chiefs to create the United States of Africa.

Rael has been a guest on most of the major TV programs worldwide like 60 minutes, CNN, FOX, and BBC news programs, as well as programs like Breakfast with Frost and Entertainment Tonight, to name a few. He has been invited to explain his vision of science to the American Congress and has been the guests of many leaders of this world, with the President Denis Sassou N'Guesso of Congo being the first to welcome him officially in 2000. Many artists acknowledged him as well like the French author Michel Houellebecq and Hugh Hefner.

In every culture on Earth, a messenger is expected, whether it is the Maitreya of the Buddhists, the Messiah of the Jews, the Paraclet of the Christians, or any other name that has been given by the many tribes around the world. This expected messenger, like all the previous ones, isn't supposed to please everyone, but to state what our Creators are expecting from us. This is what RAEL has been doing for more than 40 years now, traveling relentlessly while making the vow not to own anything, but to give everything towards welcoming our Creators in the Embassy they requested be built before 2035."

SOURCE: Raelian Movement

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There's an Insidious Strategy Behind Donald Trump's Retweets

‘I’m not saying, I’m just saying.’ (Punyaruk Baingern/Shutterstock.com)

⏩ Editor’s note: This is an updated version of the article "How Donald Trump Gets Away With Saying Things Other Candidates Can't" published in March 2016

By Jennifer Mercieca, Texas A&M University

On Nov. 29, President Trump retweeted a series of videos that purported to depict violence committed by Muslims. They had originated from the account of a far-right British ultranationalist who had been convicted for harassing a Muslim. The backlash was swift, with British Prime Minister Theresa May saying “the President is wrong to have done this.”

But Trump’s retweeting of controversial (sometimes outright false) content is part of a pattern.

For example, during the 2016 campaign, George Stephanopoulos asked Donald Trump about his retweet of a follower who insisted that both Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz were ineligible for the presidency.

Trump dismissed Stephanopoulos’ question with “it was a retweet” – as if to say that retweeting someone else’s claim meant that he wasn’t responsible for the content.

When pressed, Trump continued:

“I mean, let people make their own determination. I’ve never looked at it, George. I honestly have never looked at it. As somebody said, he’s not [eligible]…and I retweet things and we start dialogue and it’s very interesting.”

It’s a response that can be reduced to I’m not saying it, I’m just saying it.

As a scholar of American political rhetoric, I’ve previously written about the ways that Donald Trump’s rhetorical style mirrors that of polarizing figures like George Wallace and Joseph McCarthy.

But it’s becoming increasingly clear that what sets Trump apart is his reliance upon paralipsis, a device that enables him to publicly say things that he can later disavow – without ever having to take responsibility for his words.

Just saying…
The art of rhetoric – or persuasive communication – can include any number of forms: speeches, essays, tweets, images, films and more.

Paralipsis (para, “side” and leipein, “to leave”) is a Greek term that translates to “leave to the side.” It’s thought to be an ironic way for a speaker to say two things at once.

For example, say you wanted to imply that your coworker takes too many coffee breaks without actually accusing him wasting time at work. You might say something like, “I’m not saying that he drinks more coffee than anyone else in the office, but every time I go to the break room, he’s in there.” You might also shrug and make a “something seems kind of off” facial expression.

Paralipsis is a powerful rhetorical device because it can also allow someone to make a false accusation – or spread a false rumor – while skirting consequences.
And Trump has become a master at wielding this tool.

For example, after he was widely condemned for retweeting a graphic of homicide data delineated by race, FactCheck.org found that “almost every figure in the graphic is wrong.” His response on the Bill O’Reilly Show was:

Bill, I didn’t tweet, I retweeted somebody that was supposedly an expert, and it was also a radio show…am I gonna check every statistic? …All it was is a retweet. And it wasn’t from me. It came out of a radio show, and other places…This was a retweet. And it comes from sources that are very credible, what can I tell you?

In other words: I’m not saying, I’m just saying.

Meanwhile, Trump has repeatedly used paralipsis to deflect criticism that he’s courting white supremacists.

In January 2016, Trump retweeted a photoshopped image of Jeb Bush from a user with the handle WhiteGenocideTM. In response to the backlash he received for retweeting a white supremacist, Trump simply shrugged: “I don’t know about retweeting. You retweet somebody and they turn out to be white supremacists. I know nothing about these groups that are supporting me.”

Likewise, he blamed a faulty earpiece for his unwillingness to disavow David Duke and the KKK in a CNN interview:

I don’t know anything about what you’re even talking about with white supremacy or white supremacists. So I don’t know. I don’t know – did he endorse me, or what’s going on? Because I know nothing about David Duke; I know nothing about white supremacists.

I’m not saying, I’m just saying.

And when Gawker tricked Trump into retweeting a quote from Benito Mussolini during the campaign, his response was “What difference does it make whether it’s Mussolini or somebody else? It’s certainly a very interesting quote.”

Accountability and responsibility
Certainly it’s a good thing to “start dialogue.” Trump knows that “interesting” content attracts retweets, followers, audiences and media attention.

However, there’s danger in circulating accusations and rumors, even if the purpose is to “start dialogue.” Research shows that once an accusation or a rumor begins to circulate, it’s very difficult to retract. Often, a retraction or clarification doesn’t receive as much attention as the initial accusation. Meanwhile, the mere act of retracting misinformation can reaffirm the deceptive assertions as facts, even after the clarification.

So what does it mean when a political figure gains a devoted following and rises to prominence – yet consistently avoids taking responsibility for the content of his public messages?

Political theorists, rhetoricians and historians have grappled with this exact problem since the rise of the “demagogue” in Athens in 429 B.C., when Pericles’ death created a vacuum for “unofficial” leaders of the people to rise to power.

The danger, according to political scientist Ernest Barker, was that “such a leader – having no official executive position – could exercise initiative and determine policy without incurring political responsibility, since it was not his duty to execute the policy which he had induced the assembly to accept.”

In the Greek context, Barker described the danger of demagogues who weren’t tasked with implementing the policies for which they advocated. In our current political context, Trump can argue that he can’t be held accountable because he wasn’t the one who originally posted the tweet. He can shrug and claim that he’s simply giving a voice to an idea.
In both cases, the defining feature of demagogues is their refusal to accept responsibility for their actions.

Donald Trump, Reality TV "Star"

Yet Donald Trump (the television star) routinely fired people on his show “The Apprentice” for failing to take responsibility for their team’s failures. And he’s often given lectures on “responsibility” to his Twitter followers, like on February 14, 2013 when he invited his followers to “take responsibility for yourself – it’s a very empowering attitude.”

To use the President’s brand of paralipsis: I’m not saying that Trump’s a hypocrite and a demagogue. I’m just saying that he doesn’t exactly follow his own advice.


About Today's Contributor:
Jennifer Mercieca, Associate Professor of Communication and Director of the Aggie Agora, Texas A&M University

This article was originally published on The Conversation.

Video: CAIR Responds to Donald Trump's Anti-Muslim Retweets

Donald Trump has retweeted Britain First deputy leader (image via The Independent)

Earlier today, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, responded to what it called President Trump's "incitement to violence against American Muslims" after he retweeted Islamophobic videos from Jayda Fransen, an anti-Muslim British political leader who has been charged in the United Kingdom with "religious aggravated harassment."

SEE: 
⏩ Trump Shares Inflammatory Anti-Muslim Videos
⏩ Trump Retweets Anti-Muslim Videos

Joining CAIR at the Capitol Hill news conference in Washington, D.C., were representatives of the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) and South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT).

SPEAKERS: (In Order of Appearance) CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad, MPAC Policy Fellow for Religious Freedom Ilhan Cagri, and SAALT Director of National Policy and Advocacy Lakshmi Sridaran.

Video: CAIR News Conference in Response to Donald Trump's Anti-Muslim Tweets

In a prepared statement, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said:

This morning, millions of Americans were shocked but not surprised to see President Trump re-tweet anti-Muslim videos.

One of the videos has already been de-bunked by Snopes. The other two videos are unverified.

The videos were from a hate group known as "Britain First," which calls for a comprehensive ban on Islam in the UK and to deport British Muslims, who've made the UK their home for generations.

President Trump's actions are putting the lives and safety of American Muslim children and families at risk. 

Hate speech leads to hate crimes. When hate speech and conspiracy theories against American minorities go unchallenged, they foster an atmosphere that causes hate crimes.

Throughout this year, CAIR offices nationwide received, on average, at least 1-2 daily reports of hate crimes targeting American Muslims, Muslim houses of worship, or people perceived as Muslim.

As numerous Americans who are Muslim or 'looked Muslim' were shot or beaten severely, we did not hear a word from this President.

During most of these attacks, attackers uttered or expressed the same anti-Muslim slurs repeated daily in mainstream headlines and often by President Trump himself.

This is a continuation of President Trump's pattern of sexual, religious and racial harassment of many Americans. This includes Trump's attempts to turn Americans against each other… and his standing by Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore, who was credibly accused of inappropriate contact with children.

Trump has infected the Republican Party and I am asking my Republican friends who believe in the words of the Declaration of Independence, in Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, in the 14th Amendment, and in the Constitution's guarantees of equal justice under law, to not sit idly by while all this injustice continues.

This is not a conservative or liberal issue; it is an American one.

I am asking our nation's Republican leadership:

• When will you draw a line in the sand against this bigotry and harassment?

• What will it take for the Republican Party to say that these actions do not represent the Grand Old Party? 

• When will you put country over party? 

• When is the Republican Leadership, RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel, House Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, going to stand up for all Americans? This cannot be the America you want your children to live in. 

Millions of Americans worry about our safety and future. 

We need Republican Party leadership to publicly affirm American values of religious freedom,

We need Republican Party leadership to join us in reminding our fellow Americans that while some may want to divide us, we are, and always will be, Americans, united as one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

CAIR has witnessed an unprecedented spike in hate incidents targeting American Muslims and members of other minority groups since the election of Donald Trump as president.

SEE: 
⏩ CAIR Report Shows 2017 on Track to Becoming One of Worst Years Ever for Anti-Muslim Hate Crimes
⏩ CAIR Says New FBI Hate Crimes Report Shows Need to Stand Up to Increasing Bigotry

Earlier today, Awad also tweeted in response to Trump's hate posts: 

"Have you no sense of decency, Sir? Do you know how many anti-Muslims incidents in the US we recorded at #CAIR this year alone? 3,296. And we haven't heard a peep from you. Some president."

To read Nihad Awad's post on Twitter, click here...

SOURCE: Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)

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Donald Trump and Britain First: White House scrambles to defend President as global condemnation grows

Donald Trump is retweeting the deputy leader of far-right group Britain First

Bonus Picture:

(courtesy of Trumpton)

After consulting the White House vet, Mr Kelly decided to tackle Mr Trump’s Twittering