If there were only some way to prove it, I would happily bet everything I own that Donald Trump does not believe in God. Not because he's carefully engaged the many philosophical proofs for atheism that are out there, of course. He's simply too much of a sociopathic narcissist to believe in anything higher than himself. He also, as recent court verdicts regarding sexual assault and massive fraud demonstrate, has no moral compass. He's only too happy to be party to attempted murder, in fact, as long as it's someone else who takes the risk of prison for it.
Alas, there's no way to force Trump to tell the truth about his lack of belief in God, but there are plenty of signs of his deep contempt for religion. Multiple witnesses have described how he laughs at Christians behind their backs, calling their faith "bullshit." When he play-acts belief in public, he struggles to hide his scorn, failing to acknowledge basic precepts of Christianity that even most non-believers understand.
I suspect most Americans, even Republican voters, understand that Trump is not a believer. (He does seem to think he's a god himself, a view his voters are all too willing to endorse.) Unfortunately, this can incline folks to feel that, if re-elected, Trump will govern as a secularist. Focus groups, for instance, regularly show that voters disregard the threat Trump poses to legal abortion, even though he's the reason Roe v. Wade was overturned. They correctly surmise that Trump would be fine with any woman he has sex with aborting an inconvenient pregnancy, but forget that, for Trump, rules are for other people. He'd only be too happy to send every woman who got an abortion to prison, so long as he personally is off the hook.
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The grim reality, however, is that should Trump win (or steal) the White House this November, he will govern as a theocrat. There's a reason that Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has attached himself like a suckerfish to Trump's rear end. Johnson wants the U.S. to abandon freedom of religion, and instead run it according to his far-right view of a "biblically sanctioned government." He sees Trump as the single best route to turning the country into a Christian dictatorship.
The only way to seize power and get the theocratic agenda enacted is through trickery.
On Tuesday, Politico published an exposé of the secret plans of The Center for Renewing America think tank, described as "a leading group in a conservative consortium preparing for a second Trump term." Led by Russell Vought, who once worked as Trump's director of the Office of Management and Budget, the group has drafted a blueprint to turn the U.S. into a "Christian nationalist" country. The group argues that "freedom is defined by God, not man," which is a fancy way of saying that they oppose most human rights. Subsequently, they are calling for an end to free speech, by using the Insurrection Act to quell protests. The coalition also expressed support for "overturning same-sex marriage, ending abortion and reducing access to contraceptives."
Trump, being so obviously irreligious, may initially seem like an odd choice to turn the U.S. into a Christian version of a country like Iran, where laws are based on far-right interpretations of religious texts. But that's why he's so valuable to the Christian right. They know most Americans oppose Christian nationalism, especially the parts where we lose free speech and sexual rights. The only way to seize power and get the theocratic agenda enacted is through trickery. Some percentage of Americans will refuse to accept Trump is the face of Christian theocracy — until, of course, it's too late and he's installed himself in power. Plus, Trump's obvious longer term goal is to make his power permanent, by destroying democracy such that voters can never remove him.
Trump himself understands the importance of fooling voters into thinking he's more moderate on social issues than he is. That's why Trump's campaign "accidentally" leaked claims that he is pondering a 16-week abortion ban. The hope is that this sounds like a reasonable compromise and helps reinforce the false impression that Trump has no desire to ban abortion. In reality, Trump would almost certainly sign a national abortion ban that is total or near-total, just as he appointed the Supreme Court justices that overturned Roe. In addition, his allies are drafting plans to bring back enforcement of the Comstock Act, a 19th-century law that makes it a crime to mail any materials or information that could be used to prevent or end a pregnancy. This would not only make it illegal to distribute abortion pills anywhere in the country but, in the hands of Trump and his allies, could be used to prosecute the distribution of contraception. Even the sharing of information about birth control could result in criminal penalties, under the law as it's written.
The Heritage Foundation, which is also busy drafting plans for Trump's possible next term, is also gunning to ban birth control along with abortion.
Keeping voters from knowing about these plans is of utmost importance to the Christian right. As one anti-choice leader told the New York Times, "I think the pro-life groups should keep their mouths shut as much as possible until the election." Notably, he's not too worried about talking to the New York Times about this campaign of deceit. That's because he knows full well that the people who will be fooled by this tactic don't engage articles at major newspapers, preferring to get their news from Facebook memes and snippets overheard on cable news. Similarly, these activists are willing to talk about their sinister plans on their own social media feeds and conferences, knowing that swing voters will never hear about it.
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Much of the press continues to treat it like a mystery as to why Trump and Republicans keep making googly eyes at Russian President Vladimir Putin. Under Johnson's leadership, House Republicans are blocking aid to Ukraine in their efforts to fend off Russia's illegal invasion. Trump openly encouraged Russia to invade more countries. Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson gave Putin a glowing interview, allowing the Russian dictator to make up elaborate justifications for what sure sounds like a plan to invade Poland. But many in the press continue to resist the obvious conclusion: Trump and his allies are openly rooting for Putin to expand his power by conquering sovereign nations.
Trump's Christian nationalism, however, unlocks why this is not a mystery at all. Putin's Russia is a model of the Christian dictatorship that MAGA Republicans want. Even though he's a murderous authoritarian, Putin frequently portrays himself as a devoted Christian whose violent and oppressive ways are in service of "protecting" his faith. Like his allies in the U.S., however, Putin's Christianity is not about love and compassion. He regularly murders his critics, and of course, is currently inflicting mass death on Ukrainians. Putin's Christianity is defined by who he hates: Feminists, LGBTQ people, Ukrainians, and anyone perceived as liberal or open-minded.
Ultimately, this is why Trump and his evangelical supporters are so inextricably tied, even as he mocks them behind their backs. It's not about faith and definitely not about love. Not even for the ones who do go to church, unlike Trump. It is, and always has been, about power. Some of them may sincerely believe and pray. Others don't really think there's a God in heaven, but it benefits them to act otherwise. Either way, however, the priority for the religious right is what it is for Trump: An excuse to exercise domination over others.
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