Put yourself in the shoes of Tony Perkins. Not the late actor Tony Perkins, who scared the pants off of just about everyone in Alfred Hitchcock’s film, Psycho. We’re talking about Tony Perkins, the president of the Family Research Council, who his attempting to scare the pants off of journalists that dare report on the true danger to democracy of Christian nationalism. Perkins doesn’t want you to be concerned about the political ramifications of Christian nationalism: “Nothing to see here, move on” seems to be his catchphrase.
If there was “nothing to see here,” Perkins wouldn’t be agitated enough to declare war on POLITICO’s Alexander Ward and Heidi Przybyla (https://www.politico.com/news/2024/02/20/donald-trump-allies-christian-nationalism-00142086). The two journalists recently published a major piece “about plans by Trump allies to infuse Christian nationalism into a new Trump administration,” People for the American Way’s Right Wing Watch’s Peter Montgomery reported (https://www.rightwingwatch.org/post/is-family-research-council-smearing-a-journalist-to-suppress-coverage-of-christian-nationalist-threat/).
Montgomery noted that “POLITICO cited internal documents from the Center for Renewing America -- started by a former Trump administration official after the 2020 election—explicitly listing ‘Christian nationalism’ among the group’s priorities for a new Trump term.”
The Heritage Foundation’s “Mandate for Leadership” – a blueprint for a second Trump administration -- boldly declares that the government should “maintain a biblically based, social-science-reinforced definition of marriage and family.”
“The problem with Christian nationalism,” columnist David French wrote recently in The New York Times, “ isn’t with Christian participation in politics but rather the belief that there should be Christian primacy in politics and law. It can manifest itself through ideology, identity and emotion. And if it were to take hold, it would both upend our Constitution and fracture our society” (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/25/opinion/christian-nationalism.html).
[For more on the dangers of Christian nationalism, see “Rob Reiner's God & Country Doc Exposes Toxic Political Power of Christian Nationalism,” @ (https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/2/23/2225313/-Rob-Reiner-s-God-Country-Doc-Exposes-Toxic-Political-Power-of-Christian-Nationalism); “The Marketing and Mainstreaming of Christian Nationalist’s Seven Mountains Mandate,” @ (https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/2/14/2223419/-The-Marketing-and-Mainstreaming-of-Christian-Nationalist-s-Seven-Mountains-Mandate); “The New Apostolic Reformation: Shadowy Powerful Christian Nationalist Movement Is Stalking Democracy,” @ (https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/2/8/2222180/-The-New-Apostolic-Reformation-Shadowy-Powerful-Christian-Nationalist-Movement-Is-Stalking-Democracy)]
According to Right Wing Watch’s Montgomery, “FRC and other right-wing figures have focused less on the [POLITICO] article than on a subsequent MSNBC appearance by Przybyla, in which she discussed the emergence of a more aggressive Christian nationalism among Trump supporters and cited the recent ruling by the Alabama Supreme Court in which the chief justice repeatedly invoked the Bible and Christian theologians in declaring that fertilized eggs should be treated as persons under the law.
“Przybyla was less precise in her spoken remarks than in her written coverage, and she has since acknowledged that she used “clumsy words” in defining Christian nationalism on television. In a thoughtful response to her critics, she sought to clarify what she believes about the importance of church-state separation and the value of covering the Christian nationalist movement:
Every person’s spiritual motivations are entitled to respect. Once these motivations take them onto the stage of politics and lawmaking that will affect the lives of fellow citizens, however, they will be treated the same as any other political actor.
That means they can expect journalistic scrutiny. They can expect fair and well-reported coverage of their political aims and the tactics used to advance them. They cannot expect exemption from criticism from people who oppose their agendas, nor any extra deference for their political words or actions simply because they are motivated by religious belief. …
Christianity is a religion. Christian Nationalism is a political movement. As I said on air, there is a big difference between the two.
Perkins’ Family Research Council is launching a mobile billboard campaign “demanding Politico stop demonizing Christians and attacking religious freedom” (https://www.frc.org/newsroom/frc-commissions-mobile-billboard-demanding-politico-stop-demonizing-christians-voters-and-attacking-religious-freedom). The FRC-commissioned billboard reads: "...they are endowed by their Creator Government with certain unalienable Rights...." Underneath that text is additional text saying: "Axel Springer's POLITICO: Demonizing Christian voters. Attacking religious freedom."
Perkins released a statement: "Make no mistake: It's all connected. The Left's coordinated use of 'Christian nationalism' and the rise in hostility against houses of worship. It's an intimidation game designed to silence Christians and suppress our votes. Now that the Left's election lawfare has misfired look for them to pivot to plan B -- voter suppression through intimidating Christian voters with ‘Christian Nationalism’ propaganda. Don't buy it. Keep praying -- keep voting -- keep standing -- for biblical truth."
According to a 2023 PRRI/Brookings Christian Nationalism Survey, while Christian nationalists are only 10 percent of the population. However, their political influence far outstrips their numbers. As USA Today’s Will Carless recently reported, talk about Christian nationalism is growing by leaps and bounds. Donald Trump is increasing embracing the narrative that he has been chosen by God — that only he can save America from Satan.
“We can't just laugh these people off anymore and treat them as a sideshow,” Bradley Onishi, an assistant professor of religion at Skidmore College, told USA Today. “I think we should be very worried. History has already shown us that these folks are ready to take action.”
For Tony Perkins, attacking journalists reporting on the dangers of muscular Christian nationalism is only the latest iteration of a well-worn Christians-are-under-attack-in-the-U.S. playbook