53 Comments

1) Mr. Cillizza, I am among those who have long believed that Trump's supporters are indeed in a cult. These data points suggest strongly that my assessment is/was correct.

2) This may have been your most disheartening column to date. Yes, I know that you just report the facts, but damn, those facts are once again very depressing these days.

Expand full comment

On #1, there is a cult-ish aspect at a minimum to the nature of Trump's support these days.

On #2, I feel you.

Expand full comment

Of course, if it's even possible for this situation to be even worse than it appears, I'd add that given that Trump's MAGA base is now in complete control of the Republican Party, that means that effectively, one of our two major political parties is controlled by a cult. That's absolutely horrifying.

Expand full comment

Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. Voltaire

Expand full comment

Very true. J6th comes to mind...:)

Expand full comment

Trump has successfully replaced God for a great number of Americans. Try arguing against God. You can't.

Expand full comment

Trumpist Christians seem to lean toward the Old Testament angry, smiting God, not the "turn the other cheek..." Jesus.

Expand full comment

Which, in essence, means that they’re not “Christians” at ALL! If the clear directions from Jesus of Nazareth on how to live a life that honors God aren’t followed and in fact are scoffed at (feed the poor, welcome the stranger/foreigner, etc), then what are those people, other than hypocrites?

Expand full comment

Agree...

I often think that Christian Nationalists, should just become another segment of Judaism.

But then, they'd only have Moslems to hate.

Expand full comment

American Christians are more devout. Their God HAS to be real, though by definition any god is not real. They will not be satisfied until everyone accepts their God as real, not just accept their customs, as the vast majority do.

Expand full comment

Chris,

One can venerate a person, in your context --- Obama --- but not throw their entire being into the feeling.

In your comparison between the Liar-In-Chief and Obama you may be using two different cadre's in comparison.

When Obama left office (2017) he had an 88.1% approval rating among Democrats. All polls 58.2%

When the Criminal-In-Chief left office in 2021 approval rating among Republicans 82.6% All polls 37.6%

The difference is that Obama's approval rating was not driven by people willing to run off the edge of a cliff.

While the Defendant-In-Chief has the rabid, lemming-like support of a large chunk of that 37.6%

Expand full comment

This poll also illustrates that, for a vast number of White Evangelicals (but not Black Evangelicals), being Evangelical solely means being a Trump supporter. And for churchgoing White evangelicals, the words of Jesus will not be followed if they conflict with the words of Trump.

Expand full comment

Read the new book by White Evangelical leader Russell Moore, who absolutely underscores your point.

Truly theirs is a Nationalist Christianity with little need or want of Jesus's tenets.

Expand full comment
Comment removed
Aug 21, 2023
Comment removed
Expand full comment

As a black evangelical I think what is happening to the white evangelical community is sad and coarsens people to understanding the importance of love and compassion in American society.

Expand full comment

I agree with many previous comments - but my next question is how do we move on from here? Do we ever get back or move forward to logic and reality? This is such a depressing realization. I knew it deep down, but seeing it here in black and white makes it all too real.

Expand full comment

Man, I wish I knew. The reality is that the Republican base I living in a bubble where not only did Trump win in 20220 but he is definitely going to win again in 2024. And I worry what the consequences among that group will be if he winds up losing (again).

Expand full comment

They have drunk (drank? slurped?) the Kool Aid and there is no turning back.

Expand full comment

It's clearly a personality cult. You show yourself to be trustworthy by admitting that new evidence is causing you to rethink past opinions.

Expand full comment

Doing what I can to be thoughtful throughout all of this.

Expand full comment

Sad and very scary

Expand full comment

“And, maybe even more stunning, Donald Trump is regarded as 30 points more trustworthy than religious leaders in the eyes of Republican primary voters. 30 points!”

There in lies the rub. These pastors have fawned over Trump for years, calling him the “anointed one.” Comparing him to Jesus and his sacrifices, and now the chickens have come home to roost. Like the RINO’s in the Republican Party or what we used to call the “sane” ones, these pastors are losing their flock to a man who inherited his wealth; almost completely lost it, and now relies on Russian oligarch money and donations to his campaign to survive.

The Bible warns of idolizing false profits; especially gilded ones, or in Trump’s case, gold plated:

Mathew 7:15: “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.”

These prosperity ministries or evangelical church’s entire existence rests on controlling their flock through fear and intimidation; clearly, they met their match with Trump!

So now Trump has taken over the evangelical faith as well as the “tin-foil” hat party. Good riddance!..:)

Expand full comment

Thank you Chris for finding the quote by then-President Donald Trump in a 2018 speech to the VFW in which he said, in effect, that he was the only source for truthful statements to contrast with the new CBS poll of Republican voters. For me, it's the latest data point that Trump has destroyed the Republican Party. It's so depressing that Trump voters consider Trump most trustworthy (70%) and 8% more trustworthy than family, friends and double digits more trustworthy than conservative media and religious leaders. It's sad that Trump voters consider conservative media more trustworthy than religious leaders. It's equally bonkers and depressing that Republican voters who consider honesty to be an important attribute prefer Trump by 70% compared to his closest competitor DeSantis at 16%.

Expand full comment

Trumpers are in a cult. I’ve said that since he won in 2016. I grew up on Long Island and north Jersey. Don the Con was a liar, narcissist, disgusting human being back in the 1970’s, and has remained so. Such a sad comment on America that he has such a following.

Expand full comment

Born and raised in Bergen County, NJ. I hear you, totally agree with you. He is despicable and it’s very very sad for our country.

Expand full comment

Moved from Queens to Ramsey in 1965, age 8.

Expand full comment

Lived in Ridgewood from 1958 (age 2) until I was married. My son went to Ramapo College.

Expand full comment

Don’t trust your pastor when he says to drink the koolaid. Trust Trump. ☠️

Expand full comment

When Trump basically said that you should believe him over your lying eyes, it was widely called out as Orwellian at the time. “War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.” It was maybe outlandish compared to normal politicians, but it was really nothing more than an escalation of the talk radio-Fox News “axis of misinformation” to the presidential level.

Expand full comment

I am just amazed it worked. I would think people would be more skeptical about just swallowing whole whatever Trump tells them!

Expand full comment

Oh fuck 😱

Expand full comment

HA! What a take!

Expand full comment

People trust the person who tells them what they already believe. Trump mixes in perceived truths that others don’t tell, like the replacement theory, the elites don’t care about them, and the trust is created. He tells the truth, ergo accept his lies.

There’s enough of what you want to be true si accept it all.

Expand full comment

I guess...but there's very little truth in those perceived truths.

I think Trump's credibility is based far more in his willingness to stick it to the elites (despite being perceived as one). I think that gives him a level of street credibility that then allows him to say and do stuff that is patently false.

Expand full comment