When Trump was defeated in the 2020 election, I assumed I would never have to write cautionary articles about Trump’s chaotic presidency, again, but now, with the election of 2024 ahead, Trump is the leading Republican candidate on the presidential ticket. He is bigger than ever, even questioning the Constitution and enjoying a kind of worship from the extreme conservative right-wing members of the Republican Party.

I have often been puzzled by the zeal evangelicals show to Trump, hardly an ethical “God-fearing” man with Christian values, but he had given evangelicals what they want, including three conservative Supreme Court Justices who helped deliver the overturning of Roe vs. Wade, leaving abortion up to the states.

Now we have a new current term, Christian Nationalism, which connotes a “nationalism” connected to fascism. Russell Vought, who served as Trump’s director of the Office of Management and Budget during his first term, is president of The Center for Renewing America think tank, a conservative consortium preparing for a second Trump term. They are developing plans to infuse Christian nationalist ideas in his administration should the former president return to power, according to documents obtained by POLITICO.

According to POLITICO, Christian Nationalists in America believe that the country was founded as a Christian nation and that Christian values should be prioritized throughout government and public life. As the country has become more secular and more diverse, Vought assumes that Christians are under assault and has spoken of policies he might pursue in response. Trump has declared he will make Christianity a core of his campaign.

Whatever happened to the separation of church and state?

Aside from the fact that America’s First Nation people were here before the colonists and that the United States has citizens of many faiths, including Jews, Muslims, and also secular humanists, even the early Puritans recognized the separation of church and state.

In 1802, Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to the Danbury, Connecticut Baptist Convention in which he presented his views on the relationship between religion and the role of the state in the new nation. Basing his views on the establishment clause of the First Amendment which said that there should be “no law respecting the establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” Jefferson stated that there must be a “wall of separation” that clearly limited the involvement of religious denominations and religious leaders in matters related to national governance (Dr. Kryzanek, Michael).

The “wall of separation” line comes from a Puritan, Roger Williams.

The Founding Fathers, including Jefferson, were concerned that differing religious views could lead to chaos and polarization, something that Donald Trump has become famous for.

Vought has a close affiliation with Christian nationalist William Wolfe, a former Trump administration official who has advocated for overturning same-sex marriage, ending abortion, and reducing access to contraceptives. Anyone can have a right to these opinions, but should these personal opinions affect laws that influence millions of citizens? Should Congress or the Supreme Court allow personal beliefs to overwhelm their decisions? Must not some objectivity and knowledge of the law be included? This is a vital question to consider before the 2024 vote.

Here are Vought’s own words:

“Christian Nationalism” is actually a rather benign and useful description for those who believe in both preserving our country’s Judeo-Christian heritage and making public policy decisions that are best for this country. The term need not be subjected to such intense scorn due to misunderstanding or slander.”

He has a point. Democracy does breed contention with debates that often grow personal, but the government is “of the people, by the people, and for the people,” and not given by Divine Right. Our founders believed in a separation of church and state which has kept America’s democracy intact since the Constitutional Convention in May of 1787.