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Tag: Donald Trump

Quote of the Day: I Didn’t Kill My Baby by Dr. Jen Gunter

Bruce Gerencser 4 Comments

dr jen gunter

On Feb. 5, during the State of the Union address, President Trump implied that women like me executed our babies after birth.

….

I am an obstetrician and gynecologist who has delivered newborns who could not live, either because they were extremely premature or had birth defects. I have provided abortion care for women after 24 weeks gestation faced with similar outcomes who chose a surgical abortion over a vaginal delivery.

And I also delivered a son who was born to die — my own son.

….

According to the president, we are executioners.

If you are going to accuse me of executing my child, then you need to know exactly what happened. It’s not a pleasant story and the ending is terrible. I wouldn’t blame you for not wanting to read it. But you need to know the truth, because stories like mine are being perverted for political gain.

It pains me to remember. And yet, it is the only memory of my son, and so even though it cuts, I keep it close.

I was pregnant with triplets and at 22 weeks and three days, my membranes ruptured — that is, my water broke, far too early. I knew it was catastrophic. Almost no baby born before 23 weeks can survive.

With the knowledge that I would probably be a parent for only a few minutes, I headed to the hospital. I told my husband at the time that it would be all right, that maybe I was wrong.

I lied. It was easier on me.

After we consulted with a high-risk obstetrician and a neonatologist, I heard the dismal news I had expected: The survival rate for male triplets at 22 weeks and three days was less than 1 percent.

And so I waited. I waited to bestow the names I had so carefully chosen on three boys who seemed destined to die at birth.

For a day nothing happened. That was cruel because I began to hope that maybe I could hang on for a few weeks and maybe one or more would survive. I couldn’t help but indulge in the fantasy. And I resented that hope because I knew the worst day of my life was almost here.

I know other parents in similar situations also cling to hope. I have delivered those women; sometimes their wrenching sobs push their child who is born to die into the world. Maybe their child had a lethal birth defect. Maybe their child was extremely premature, like my Aidan. There are a lot of ways a newborn can be born to die.

After a fitful night of sleep at the hospital — because when you know Death is standing at the doorway waiting for your baby, you don’t sleep well — I got up to use the bathroom.

And then, all alone, I realized I was delivering. There was no time to cry out. I stood alone in the hospital bathroom and delivered my own son. He fit in my hands.

….

And then a nurse parted everyone and brought him to me wrapped in a blanket. He was dying, she said. Did I want to hold him?

I was being poked and prodded. Needles piercing my skin. Drugs for sedation. I was being held down (I don’t resent that; I just couldn’t cooperate, and I know it was an emergency and everyone was really trying). A speculum was also in my vagina, opened wide so a doctor — a friend of mine trying not to cry — trimmed Aidan’s umbilical cord dangling from his placenta that was still inside my uterus.

I tell myself it was all those things that prevented me from holding him, but I know the truth.

I wasn’t brave enough.

If I held him and saw him die, then I would know exactly what I was going to face if the other two delivered (ultimately, my other two sons survived).

As Aidan’s parents we had decided that invasive procedures, like intravenous lines and a breathing tube in a one-pound body, would be pointless medical care. And so, as we planned, Aidan died.

— Dr. Jen Gunter, The New York Times, I Didn’t Kill My Baby, February 26, 2019

If you have the time, please read Dr. Gunter’s heartbreaking article in its entirety. It certainly casts a different light on pregnancy complications and late-term abortions; a light that anti-abortionists don’t want people to see.

Christians Say the Darnedest Things: Donald Trump Chosen by God to be President

Bruce Gerencser 2 Comments

evangelicals and donald trump

I think God calls all of us to fill different roles at different times and I think that he wanted Donald Trump to become president, and that’s why he’s there and I think he has done a tremendous job in supporting a lot of the things that people of faith really care about.

— Sarah Huckabee Sanders, CBN Interview, January 30, 2019

Modern Evangelical Thinking

Bruce Gerencser 2 Comments

guest post

Guest post by Paul McLaughlin

I’m reading a history book (Early Modern Europe: An Oxford History edited by Euan Cameron) in which there is a section by Robin Briggs (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Briggs ) about religious thought in the 1600s. I have been struck by how much “modern” Evangelical thinking still reflects the same thought patterns.

The author talks about “the continuing domination of theory over facts; intellectuals used the latter [i.e. facts] to support preformed concepts rather than to test them, so that referential accuracy was still low on most people’s scale of values.”

Doesn’t this describe a lot of Evangelical blather? The pastor says the Bible says X, so anything that doesn’t fit the what the pastor says is distorted or ignored. The important thing is to preserve the myth.

Briggs continues, “For most thinkers of the time change for the better usually implied a return to an allegedly superior past, through the removal of corrupting elements.”

My comment in one word: MAGA.

To quote further:

Significant numbers of both clerics and laity, in all the major religious denominations [of Europe], were making a strenuous attempt to live out true Christianity as they understood it. In the process they rejected numerous traditional compromises, recognized only absolute moral standards, and tried to extend the sacred into all areas of life. These enthusiasts were always a minority, but more tolerant – or perhaps lukewarm – Christians often found it difficult to resist them openly. Scripture, the Church Fathers, and logic itself appeared to be on their side. Their ultimate aim was to turn passive Christians into active ones, who did not just participate in ritual activities stage-managed by others, but internalized the faith as a moral code and way of living. Conversion and a change of life were key concepts here, built around the inspirational power of the word. Preaching and religious writing were to carry the message around Europe, where missionaries were just as necessary as they were in heathen lands beyond the seas.

Remember, he’s talking about the 1600s, not the 2000s.

Ultimately, this type of reforming Christianity tended to fragment as much as it united. The closer the bonding between enthusiasts, the sharper the divisions between them and their opponents; the practice of defining oneself against the ‘other’ was much in evidence here. Internal splits could be ferocious …

On the international scale confessional tensions remained high, for despite the similarities between the creeds they continued to regard one another as mortal enemies, while as churches became more national this hostility might be reinforced by xenophobia [as in, evangelicals wearing MAGA hats]. Different countries vied for the position of the ‘elect nation’ favoured by God [as in, America as the new Jerusalem].

Finally,

There were some obvious motives for rulers to associate themselves with religious reform, which offered a boost to their power and prestige, and a means to trump [Trump?] potential critics.

So next time you are tempted to argue with an Evangelical, remember that you can’t take their arguments at face value. Their thought patterns are rigidly set in a deep layer of brittle concrete that has been curing for at least 400 years, and they can’t yield on anything because one crack can bring down the whole structure.

Purchase: Early Modern Europe: An Oxford History edited by Euan Cameron

Christians Say the Darnedest Things: Migrant Caravan Children Have TERRIBLE Parents

Bruce Gerencser 9 Comments
jesus mary joseph at the border
Cartoon by Mike Luckovich

The Bible has some very harsh things to say about those who put children in harm’s way. For those who are attempting to illegally enter the United States sovereign territory, in disrespect and contempt for the rule of law, any harm that comes to their children is the consequence of their own sin and lawlessness. Likewise, using children for the purpose of propaganda – knowing they are in harm’s way – is one of the most despicable abuses of children imaginable.

Simply put, those attempting to break into the United States with their children are child-abusers. Their children are in far more jeopardy because of the ineptitude of their parents than they are from whatever danger lies behind in Central America.

Although progressive professed Christians told us all along that the migrant caravan wasn’t attempting to illegally cross into the United States, but would just politely knock on the door to seek asylum, the horde attempted to forcefully invade the border wall at the San Ysidro border crossing. Some of the criminals threw projectiles at U.S. Border and Customs agents, and given the invasion and violence taking place, American security personnel tossed tear gas into the crowd of invaders to dispel the intruders. They would have been justified to fire bullets.

….

The real culprits in this sad account of the Soros-funded migrant horde are parents who voluntarily use their children as human shields and propaganda narratives, knowing that they are in harm’s way. Shame on those parents.

Here’s a question: What part of “If you forcefully enter the country we will shoot you” do they not understand? That’s exactly what has been very clearly articulated and these parents have been warned by the Trump administration. They chose to take their kids where President Trump promised them authorities had the right to open fire. That’s bad parenting, to put it mildly.

Asylum was never intended for people trying to escape poverty. And when the mass numbers of Undocumented Democrats become residents, they’ll remain impoverished under their enslavement to the U.S. welfare state. Asylum was designed for political refugees, not people trying to escape ordinary life issues.

Furthermore, these parents have been bribed with cash to put their kids in harm’s way, in hopes by propagandists that the presence of children will deter American authorities from protecting her borders. This tactic is no different than the Palestinian Liberation Organization or other terrorist organizations hiding terrorists at schools and orphanages so Israel doesn’t rightly bomb them to smithereens. When kids occasionally die in a war zone, it’s ultimately 100% the fault of the people who voluntarily brought them into a war zone.

Some may look at U.S. Border Agents or President Trump and say, “How dare you gas kids, you monster?!” Instead, they should look at the parents and say, “Wow. You are really, really bad parents.”

— Pulpit & Pen, Why the Migrant Caravan Children Have Terrible Parents, November 27, 2018

The Sounds of Fundamentalism: Republicans Are More Godly Than Democrats Says Phil Robertson

Bruce Gerencser 1 Comment

phil robertson

This is the one hundred and eighty-ninth installment in The Sounds of Fundamentalism series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a video clip that shows the crazy, cantankerous, or contradictory side of Evangelical Christianity, please send me an email with the name or link to the video. Please do not leave suggestions in the comment section.  Let’s have some fun!

Today’s Sound of Fundamentalism is a video clip of an interview of Duck Dynasty’s quacker-in-chief Phil Robertson.

Video Link

The Sounds of Fundamentalism: Michele Bachmann Preaches the Right-Wing Political Gospel

Bruce Gerencser 2 Comments

michele bachmann

This is the one hundred and eighty-eighth installment in The Sounds of Fundamentalism series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a video clip that shows the crazy, cantankerous, or contradictory side of Evangelical Christianity, please send me an email with the name or link to the video. Please do not leave suggestions in the comment section.  Let’s have some fun!

Today’s Sound of Fundamentalism is a video clip of a campaign sermon by Michele Bachmann.

Video Link

Text Excerpt:

This isn’t about political parties. This is about whether or not we are going to yield ourselves to a mighty God—for his sovereignty, for his glory, for his power, and whether or not this nation will continue to reflect his biblical values from this shining city on the hill, all across the world. That’s the only reason that this nation has been singularly blessed throughout the entirety of its life.

We are privileged to be here in this city as proxies for his huge election that is about to happen. Because just like two years ago, when we asked God for a reprieve in this country, he gave us a reprieve. We’ve had unparalleled growth—never seen growth like we’ve seen over the last two years in this country. You’d never know it listening to the radio or looking at news sources, but it’s been unparalleled what’s happened.

Video Link

On Monday, Bachmann delivered a prayer at an event held at right-wing loon Harry Jackson, Jr’s Hope Christian Church in Beltsville, Maryland.

Here’s an excerpt:

Because, Lord, we ask that none but godly men and women would rule. We ask you for those godly men and women, oh Lord God almighty, we ask that you would do what no man thought could be done. Lord, they have started some of the voting in some of the states, but tomorrow is going to be the whole enchilada. And so, Father, we ask in the midst of that voting, that your will would prevail. …

You have a purpose and a plan for the United States of America. And we say nothing will thwart your plan for this country. And that’s why we come before you and say, ‘Satan, you will be bound in Jesus’ name. You will be bound, you and your minions, and you will not prevail in this election.’

We pray, oh God, against deception. We pray against delusion. We pray against every vile dart of the enemy that is thrown against the church of the Lord our God, and we say you will not prevail.

And instead we loose the holy angels of your kingdom to go about on assignment, to and fro across this nation, from Maine to International Falls, Minnesota, to Seattle, down to San Diego, and down to Miami, to Brownsville, Texas, all down the Mississippi, across this nation, that you would send your angels, Father, to bring about righteousness and holiness and justice.

And that you would confound the one who comes to kill, steal and destroy. There will be no killing tomorrow. There will be no stealing tomorrow. There will be no destroying tomorrow.

We are reclaiming this nation for the kingdom of Almighty God. We reclaim this kingdom. You cannot have this kingdom, Satan, this is God’s kingdom. And we preach that into every voting booth in this nation. That is not your territory, Satan. Get your hands off of every ballot and every voting booth!

And instead, Lord, you go in there. You take your people in there. Take your holy people in there to cast a holy ballot, a ballot that would honor your name.

Christians Say the Darnedest Things: Why Jerry Falwell, Jr. Has an Ongoing Bromance with Donald Trump

Bruce Gerencser 6 Comments

trump aftershock stephen strang

For over two years now people have been asking me why I supported Donald Trump as a candidate for president of the United States and why I continue to support him now in his role as the chief executive of our great nation. After all, I was one of the only people from the evangelical camp who endorsed Mr. Trump even before the Iowa caucuses. I determined early on that what ailed the United States would require more than a PR and policy bandage. And if Trump were to get elected, he would need more than bandwagon support.

But to answer the question about my support, much of my motivation came from my background in business. My father came from a family of businesspeople who were not Christians, including my grandfather. But a series of personal tragedies resulted in his early death at the age of 55. My dad was only 15 at the time, and he became a Christian because of those sorrowful events. I think he might have gone into the family business if those things hadn’t happened. The point is that though the world knows the Falwell name chiefly in the context of my famous clergyman father, most Falwells have been successful entrepreneurs—businessmen and businesswomen.

Even in the context of a nonprofit organization such as Liberty University, I have seen firsthand what applying business principles can do to save an organization. In the late 1980s and 1990s, when donations dried up, we had to create a business model that would keep Liberty alive. In the end not only did we eliminate the debt; we also prospered enough that we’ve now fulfilled many of the original visions my father had for this university. But Liberty’s success didn’t come through hazy or lazy leadership.

So that’s why I supported Donald Trump early, because the United States is drowning in $21 trillion of debt. Trump is a businessman. We haven’t had many businessmen who have become president. Instead, we get career politicians who are short on transformative thinking and long on political career preservation. Even though Trump hadn’t even decided what all his political views were at that time, I knew that a pragmatic businessman with common sense would come down on the right side of issues. Trump wanted to do what was best for the country. And if you start with that desire—to do what’s best for the country and for the common man—then you have no choice but to be a conservative. It’s that simple.

I’m proud I supported Donald Trump. And since he’s entered the White House, I’ve stayed in close touch with him, talking to him about once a month. It has become a close friendship. I’m so pleased with how he’s kept his promises. He’s appointed justices to the lower courts and the Supreme Court who I believe will uphold the Constitution. On matters related to religious liberty, the president has been a godsend. And his deregulation strategies have brought about prosperity for businesses and the American worker. He’s done all the things he said he was going to do—even with all the attempts to thwart his administration by fake Republicans in the Senate and all the folks on the left who will stop at nothing to overthrow a duly elected president.

You see, we needed somebody with resolve and backbone. Republicans and Democrats—the parties had become so much alike that you really couldn’t tell the difference. Many of them were—and still are—so scared of their shadow and criticism from the press that they waffle on every issue. They put their finger up and see which way the wind is blowing.

But Trump just marches ahead. He doesn’t care how much criticism comes his way. And the people don’t care either. The people don’t care what the press say anymore because they’ve lost all credibility. That’s what Americans have longed to see in their president—somebody who will stand up for the country, stand up for what’s right and not back down in the face of adversity.

Like Stephen Strang does in this book, I compare Trump to Winston Churchill during World War II. Everything looked lost in the face of the onslaught of Hitler’s military might. Churchill had to resolve to move ahead anyhow and to never quit. That’s what I see in Donald Trump, and I think that’s why people support him in spite of all the negatives that get thrown at him.

In this new book by my friend Stephen Strang, you will come to a great understanding of all that has been happening since election night. Strang shows how President Trump has exceeded the expectations of his supporters. And Strang reveals how the left, instead of acknowledging the genuine successes of the Trump administration, are growing in their animus toward the president. Refusing to acknowledge the roaring economy and a renewed sense of optimism and national pride, some on the left (and some on the right) are succumbing to “Trump Derangement Syndrome.” And so the rift between the left and the right has grown deep, and our national politics are more polarized than ever.

But Strang’s book strikes a chord of hopefulness because he believes (as do I) that these days are some of the most extraordinary times in the life of our nation. You’ll enjoy Trump Aftershock. But even more, it will prompt you to pray and work in your own community to “make America great again.”

—Jerry Falwell Jr.
President, Liberty University
Lynchburg, Virginia

— Jerry Falwell, Jr, Forward to Stephen “I’ve Got a Book to Sell” Strang’s newest book, Trump Aftershock

You can buy Trump Aftershock here. I am sure regular readers of this blog will want to run out and buy themselves a copy. That’s sarcasm, by the way.

Video Link

Quote of the Day: Trump’s Economy vs. The Economy Most of Us Live In

Bruce Gerencser 3 Comments

robert reich

As White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow recently put it, “The single biggest story this year is an economic boom that is durable and lasting.”

Really? Look closely at the living standards of most Americans, and you get a very different picture.

Yes, the stock market has boomed since Trump became president. But it’s looking increasingly wobbly as Trump’s trade wars take a toll.

Over 80 percent of the stock market is owned by the richest 10 percent of Americans anyway, so most Americans never got much out of Trump’s market boom to begin with.

The trade wars are about to take a toll on ordinary workers. Trump’s steel tariffs have cost Ford $1 billion so far, for example, forcing the automaker to plan mass layoffs.

What about economic growth? Data from the Commerce Department shows the economy at full speed, 4.2 percent growth for the second quarter.

But very little of that growth is trickling down to average Americans. Adjusted for inflation, hourly wages aren’t much higher now than they were forty years ago.

Trump slashed taxes on the wealthy and promised everyone else a $4,000 wage boost. But the boost never happened. That’s a big reason why Republicans aren’t campaigning on their tax cut, which is just about their only legislative accomplishment.

Trump and congressional Republicans refuse to raise the minimum wage, stuck at $7.25 an hour. Trump’s Labor Department is also repealing a rule that increased the number of workers entitled to time-and-a-half for overtime.

Yes, unemployment is down to 3.7 percent. But jobs are less secure than ever. Contract workers – who aren’t eligible for family or medical leave, unemployment insurance, the minimum wage, or worker’s compensation – are now doing one out of every five jobs in America.

Trump’s Labor Department has invited more companies to reclassify employees as contract workers. Its new rule undoes the California Supreme Court’s recent decision requiring that most workers be presumed employees unless proven otherwise. (Given California’s size, that decision had nationwide effect.)

Meanwhile, housing costs are skyrocketing, with Americans now paying a third or more of their paychecks in rent or mortgages.

Trump’s response? Drastic cuts in low-income housing. His Secretary of Housing and Urban Development also wants to triple the rent paid by poor households in subsidized housing.

Healthcare costs continues to rise faster than inflation. Trump’s response? Undermine the Affordable Care Act. Over the past two years, some 4 million people have lost healthcare coverage, according to a survey by the Commonwealth Fund.

Pharmaceutical costs are also out of control. Trump’s response? Allow the biggest pharmacist, CVS, to merge with the one of the biggest health insurers, Aetna — creating a behemoth with the power to raise prices even further.

The cost of college continues to soar. Trump’s response? Make it easier for for-profit colleges to defraud students. His Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos, is eliminating regulations that had required for-profit colleges to prove they provide gainful employment to the students they enroll.

Commuting to and from work is becoming harder, as roads and bridges become more congested, and subways and trains older and less reliable. Trump’s response? Nothing. Although he promised to spend $1.5 trillion to repair America’s crumbling infrastructure, his $1.5 trillion tax cut for big corporations and the wealthy used up the money.

Climate change is undermining the standard of living of ordinary Americans, as more are hit with floods, mudslides, tornados, draughts, and wildfires. Even those who have so far avoided direct hits will be paying more for insurance – or having a harder time getting it. People living on flood plains, or in trailers, or without home insurance, are paying the highest price.

Trump’s response? Allow more carbon into the atmosphere and make climate change even worse.

Too often, discussions about “the economy” focus on overall statistics about growth, the stock market, and unemployment.

But most Americans don’t live in that economy. They live in a personal economy that has more to do with wages, job security, commutes to and from work, and the costs of housing, healthcare, drugs, education, and home insurance.

These are the things that hit closest home. They comprise the typical American’s standard of living.

— Robert Reich, Alternet, Here’s the Truth About Trump’s ‘Great Economy’, October 21, 2018

Christians Say the Darnedest Things: Trump Honors Evangelicals More Than Any President Before Him

Bruce Gerencser 3 Comments
evangelical support for donald trump
Cartoon by Monte Wolverton

After the election, I read several books about Trump, and they didn’t even mention the evangelical vote. And yet that was decisive in Trump’s win. As it turned out, 81 percent of all evangelicals [Strang is wrong here. 81 percent of voting Evangelicals voted for Trump, NOT 81 percent of all Evangelicals] —Bible-believing, born-again, church-going Christians—ended up voting for Trump. Part of that had to do with the fact that Trump was running against Hillary Clinton. (Whatever negative things you can say about Trump, Clinton would have been 10 times worse, in my opinion.)

….

But Trump has turned out to be quite a surprise. He’s proved himself to be a champion of religious freedom, he seems to be very respectful of evangelicals, and he even seeks counsel from them. Evangelical leaders have said they have more access to him than to any president in recent history.

What generally happens is that Democrats running for president don’t reach out to the evangelical community. They tend to write them off. The Republicans, on the other hand, reach out to evangelicals during their campaign but, once elected, don’t talk to them or even honor their promises to them. But Trump has been very different in that regard. In short, the last few years have been a refreshing change.

I believe this has been a largely untold story, which is why I decided to write Trump Aftershock. My heart in writing the book is to highlight what God has done through Trump since he was elected. Just think of how Trump moved the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, negotiated with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un and most recently, freed American pastor Andrew Brunson, who was wrongfully imprisoned in Turkey for two years. These are the aftershocks of Trump’s election and, by God’s grace, more are yet to come.

— Stephen “I Have a Book to Sell” Strang, Charisma News, How Trump Honors Evangelicals More Than Any Democratic or Republican President Before Him, October 17, 2018

Christians Say the Darnedest Things: Democrats Filled With Demonic Spirit

Bruce Gerencser 4 Comments

bert-farias

Beginning with the election of President Trump, we are all perhaps witnessing one of the historic turning points in American history. If they were able to destroy Judge Kavanaugh, it would have been a big step toward perhaps destroying America, for it could have set a precedent. Does that sound overdramatic? Please hear me out.

This is not politics as usual. We are not wrestling against flesh and blood. This is the work of principalities and powers and the rulers of the darkness of this world (Eph. 6:12). This is all related to the death of a nation and a constitution founded on godly principles. The two things the radical leftists fear the most are the Bible and our national Constitution.

….

When you witness yet another senior Democratic senator, Diane Feinstein, deliberately conspiring in a Senate deliberation involving hiding a letter for months and the witness for weeks, and doing it totally against Senate rules—and then to complicate the matter, apparently allowing one of her staff to leak the letter to create a media firestorm, it is not politics as usual. It is the basest form of corruption and lawless manipulation.

….

As I stated, this all began building momentum after the election of President Donald Trump on that fateful day for all Democrats in November 2016. The defeat of Hillary Clinton loosened the grip on socialism and atheistic communism and the complete remaking of Barack Obama’s America.

This is the reason the day after the inauguration you heard influential celebrities like Madonna saying she has dreams of the White House burning down and being destroyed. It’s the reason other popular figures use such derogatory language and profanities against our president. Remember the image, still so clear in my mind, of the woman holding a model of the bloody head of Donald Trump in her hand?

This is not normal. It is a murderous Satanic spirit. Never in my lifetime or perhaps the entire history of our nation have we seen this kind of disrespect and dishonor for the highest office in the land. It is demonic filth and hatred.

This irrational and senseless attitude, which borders on insanity, is the prevailing spirit in our nation. It’s like a virus. The ungodly media is shaping the minds of multitudes and spreading this virus. That’s why you had the desperation to find collusion with the Russians, which, one Washington reporter, after two years of investigation, says turned up no evidence at all. Zero. Zilch. Nada. But just as with the Kavanaugh hearings, it’s never been about evidence. It’s about smearing, undermining, distorting the facts and character defamation of the truly upright.

— Bert Farias, Charisma News, We Are in a War With the ‘Rule or Ruin’ Radical Left, October 11, 2018