quote:

I spent years working for a conservative Christian organization. But I believe that supporting Trump damages the country—and Christianity, too.

It’s well known that conservative Christians are among Donald Trump’s strongest supporters. If all you knew about me was where I’ve worked, you’d probably assume that I’m in the Trump camp too.

I spent nearly three decades with social-conservative organizations, the lion’s share at one of the most prominent evangelical groups—Focus on the Family, founded by James Dobson. As a writer and sometime-editor, I worked for Focus for more than 20 years, first as a staffer (1997-2003), then as a regular contractor. Although most of what Focus does isn’t political, what I did was: I worked for the public-policy department, mainly for its magazine, Citizen (canceled in late 2018).

So yes, I’m a conservative Christian, albeit not an evangelical like most of my former colleagues. (I’m a Missouri Synod Lutheran—different theology, but similar views on many social issues.) Yes, I strongly support pro-life, pro-religious liberty causes. Yes, the Trump administration has done some things to help those causes—appointed some judges, taken some positions in court, enacted some executive-branch policies.

But no, I don’t support Donald Trump. Never have, never will. The price is far, far too high.