In view of the fact that even PBS seems to be approaching an all-Trump-all-the-time approach to its political programming here on the weekend before the Republican convention, perhaps it was not all that surprising to hear an earnest interviewer discussing Donald Trump with an equally earnest academic even on "This American Life."
Donald Trump is a twice-divorced New Yorker who freely curses during speeches, has no perceptible religious impulse, and in general displays none of the behavioral decorum or personal characteristics otherwise generally associated with the kind of person belonging to the religious Right, the interviewer said. Why, then, does he appear to command such significant support among America's evangelicals?
The interviewee began a well-rehearsed description of Evangelical issues and how important these are to their world-view. "They are very upset about same-sex marriage, for instance," he said. He went on to parse some of Trump's innumerable comments on pretty much everything --you can find almost any position you like in Trump's recorded logorrhea-- to show that Trump, such people believe, somehow shares their values.
I have a different, much simpler answer.
These Trump-supporting evangelicals can reconcile the man with their principles because they don't really care about the principles they publicly espouse.
It's kind of like the deficit: the Republicans in Congress abhor the deficit, until a Republican sits in the Oval Office, or until they see a chance to spend on something they really want. In a similar fashion, the religiosity is just a pious (as it were) front; what they really like about the Right is the racism, the xenophobia. It's the intolerance that motivates these people. The mega-church is just where they can find it. It is decorously layered over with sincerity, with I-love-Jesus sentiment; and anyway, the music is pretty good and the whole spectacle is free, every Sunday. And you don't find many of those people there, just enough to sort of flavor the experience with a bit of spice while convincing you that you are actually a very tolerant, diverse sort of guy. And you can make some decent contacts there, too.
These people would have taken Ted Cruz, even though his pleading, on the stump, for the body of Christ to awaken was a bit unseemly, even for them. But Trump will do.
"Evangelical" is a nice label, gives you a feeling of belonging to a movement, and doesn't require you to think very much about what you believe in. And it will certainly never expose the wishes you have, deep down.
And now, they have Trump to say for them what they are too proper to say themselves. And they can say, with some plausibility, that he doesn't really believe it.
But they know different.
