The phenomenon of this political season is Donald Trump. The Donald has tapped into discontent both with the political ruling class in Washington as well as some of the hot-button issues—like open borders—that concern many people.
I’m neutral on who to endorse for President. I’ll decide that later. I will admit I do like a lot of what Donald Trump has said. I’m glad he talks about his faith. But when he can’t quote one verse from the Bible that means something to him, it shows how superficial his spirituality must be.
Last week we ran an article by Iowa journalist Bob Eschlimann of theiowastatesman.com, who raised an interesting question: What if it is God who is raising up Donald Trump?
He wrote: “What if Donald Trump—the thrice-married, four-times bankrupted businessman—has been appointed by God to lead us? What if he is a modern-day Nebuchadnezzar?
“With the armed forces of Babylon on the verge of sacking Jerusalem, God used His prophet Jeremiah to instruct the Israelites that He was about to inflict his punishment upon Judah and the Temple, and that if they wished to survive, they must follow Nebuchadnezzar and willingly go into bondage. Those who did as they were instructed were blessed.”
One of the aspects of the primary political season is for the candidates to show who they really are and for others to ask the hard questions.
Often these questions come from journalists. Sometimes they come from other candidates. And with Trump, the other candidates are beginning to take potshots at him.
Last week, Gov. Bobby Jindal, who has generated only 1-2 percent support in the polls, asked some hard questions about Trump in a speech at the National Press Club. A video of that speech has been making its rounds on the Internet, and a full transcript of the speech can be found at the end of this Strang Report.
Jindal obviously has something to gain by questioning Trump’s character. He also speaks in more extremes than fit some people’s comfort level. For example, our own Ben Johnson on charismacaucus.com criticized candidates Jindal and Dr. Ben Carson, who had criticized Trump: “By attacking Trump, Jindal and Carson did something seemingly impossible: They’ve appeared meaner than Donald Trump,” he wrote.
Yet Jindal asks some questions that must be answered by all Americans, especially by Christians. Pundits seem to indicate Trump is supported by evangelicals in similar proportions to the general public. While few Christian leaders have endorsed Trump, one leading Baptist pastor from Dallas was conspicuous at Trump’s huge rally in that city earlier this week.
Don’t misconstrue this as my endorsing Jindal. It’s way too early for that. But, I have met him and know him to be an effective leader who is serious about his faith. I listen to the questions he raises.
After you read this, share it with friends. We need to get this message out to the body of Christ. And leave your own comments below.
Gov. Bobby Jindal’s Remarks About Donald Trump
Note: Here is the full transcript of Gov. Bobby Jindal’s speech before the National Press Club.
Today, I’m going to put my own political mission aside and talk about something more important than myself, more important than any single candidate or person.
Our country is slipping away right before our very eyes. We are descending down the path to socialism, dependence on government is becoming the new American Dream, we are unfazed by the selling of body parts as commodities, and we are pathetically weak in international affairs. America is slipping away, right in front of us in real time.
Earlier this year, Charisma Media Senior Editor Jennifer LeClaire (third from left) and I met with Gov. Bobby Jindal (right) and his wife Supriya Jolly (left), where we posed for this photo.
And yet this is a moment of great opportunity for America. This is a time when we can make dramatic changes, we can embrace conservative ideals, and we can literally turn our country around.
I believe the country is ready for that. You can see it in people’s eyes, you can read it in the polls, America is ready for a politically incorrect conservative revolution.
The liberalism and incompetence of the Obama Administration have pushed us to the edge, to the point where you can literally see the idea of America slipping away—and people are dreading it, and they are ready to stop that from happening.
The American people have a massive appetite for a rebirth, a massive appetite for making America great again.
So that is the context and the reason for what I’m going to say next.
I. I like The Idea of Donald Trump
- I like the idea of a D.C. outsider.
- I like that he doesn’t care about political correctness.
- I like the fact that he says things people are thinking but are afraid to say.
- I like that he uses Ronald Reagan’s theme of making America great again.
Trump’s diagnoses are correct—the professional political class in Washington, including the Republicans, is incompetent and full of nonsense. He is right. The political class in Washington has abandoned us. Trump has performed an important service by taking on the political class and exposing them for being completely full of nonsense.
II. But, here’s the problem. Donald Trump is also full of nonsense.
Don’t get me wrong—His act is tremendous. It’s a sellout show, and I’ve enjoyed it.
I laughed out loud when he read Lindsey Graham’s cell number on live TV.
I got a kick out of him giving kids helicopter rides at the Iowa state fair.
And, I was amused when he said the people at Jeb’s town hall were sleeping.
But, it is now time for us to do what Donald would do, and say the thing that everyone is thinking, but is afraid to say out loud. So I’m going to do it.
The Donald Trump Act is great, and the idea of Donald Trump is great –BUT the reality of Donald Trump is absurd, he’s a non-serious carnival act.
III. So here’s the truth about Trump that we all know, but have been afraid to say …
Donald Trump is shallow. Has no understanding of policy. He’s full of bluster but has no substance. He lacks the intellectual curiosity to even learn.
It’s silly to argue policy with this guy, he’s doesn’t know anything about it, he has no idea what he is talking about; he makes it all up on the fly. According to him his health care plan will be “fabulous” and his tax plan will be “really, really terrific.” He’s shallow, no substance.
He does not believe in limited government and he has told us that over and over. From his belief in socialized medicine to his desire for tax increases, he’s told us over and over that he’s got no problem with big top-down style government. He’s only got one real problem with Washington – that he’s not running it.
Donald Trump is for Donald Trump. He believes in nothing other than himself. He’s not a liberal, he’s not a moderate, and he’s not a conservative. He’s not a Republican, Democrat, or Independent. He’s not for anything or against anything. Issues and policies and ideals are not important to him. He’s for Donald.
Donald Trump is a narcissist and an egomaniac. That may sound like a serious charge to make, but it is also something that everyone knows to be true, and he knows it too, and he celebrates it. He told us the other day that he’s likes Kanye West, why? “Because Kanye loves Trump.” He may be an entertaining narcissist, but he is one nonetheless.
Like all narcissists, Donald Trump is insecure and weak, and afraid of being exposed. And that’s why he is constantly telling us how big and how rich and how great he is, and how insignificant everyone else is. We’ve all met people like Trump, and we know that only a very weak and small person needs to constantly tell us how strong and powerful he is. Donald Trump believes that he is the answer to every question.
Donald Trump is dangerous. But not in the way you think. Many say he’s dangerous because you wouldn’t want a hot head with his fingers on the nuclear codes. And while that’s true, that’s not the real danger here.
The real danger is that, ironically, Donald Trump could destroy America’s chance to be great again.
As conservatives, we have a golden opportunity in front of us. The Democrats have terribly screwed things up, and are basically giving us the next election.
If we blow this opportunity—we may never get it again, the stakes are incredibly high.
Donald Trump is not a serious person. It’s all a solo act, it’s all just a show, and the joke is on us. He’s laughing all the way to the bank, or to the polling location. P.T. Barnum was never more right.
You may have recently seen that after Trump said the Bible is his favorite book, he couldn’t name a single Bible verse or passage that meant something to him. And we all know why, because it’s all just a show, and he hasn’t ever read the Bible. But you know why he hasn’t read the Bible? It’s because he’s not in it.
The Democrats have practically gift wrapped this election for us. It’s as if they know they’ve run the country into the ground, and they are running their worst possible candidate who is running the worst possible campaign.
The whole thing is set up for us to win—and yet we are flirting with nominating a non-serious, unstable, substance-free narcissist.
Nominating Donald Trump is a certain way for us to miss our opportunity to make America great again.
Summer is over; it’s time to get serious about saving our country. It’s time to send Donald Trump back to reality TV—it’s time to tell Donald Trump—it’s been great; you’ve been great for ratings; you are almost as funny as Don Rickles; the show has been a blast.
We do, in fact, need to make America great again. We do in fact need to fire everybody in Washington. We do in fact need to get rid of political correctness. That is all true. And we can make America great again. But, we will not do that by putting an unserious and unstable narcissist in the White House.
Our country is worth saving, and this is our time to save it.
The conservative cause deserves more than a power-hungry shark who eats whatever is in front of him … because sooner or later, we will be his next meal.
This is our moment; this is our time. We can win right now, or we can be the biggest fools of all time and put our faith not in our principles, but in one egomaniacal madman who has no principles.
If we nominate him, he will self-destruct in a massive way in a general election. He may be Hillary Clinton’s only hope.
Even worse, if you are a conservative, it wouldn’t matter if he won. He believes in nothing, we have no idea what he would do.
It’s time to get serious about making America great again. It’s time for Donald Trump to take the ride down his own elevator. It’s time to tell Donald Trump—no, we will not put an egomaniacal, unserious person in the White House— “you’re fired.”
We have to put a committed conservative in the White House who will make our country great again and will ignore the professional political class in Washington.
Donald Trump’s campaign is not about making America great again, it is about making Donald Trump great.
Obviously, I think I am the right man for the job, but the voters will make that decision. America is ready for a politically incorrect conservative revolution.
Steve Strang is the founder of Charisma and CEO of Charisma Media. Follow him on Twitter or Facebook.
Stephen Strang