A former Never Trumper changes his mind
I didn’t vote for Trump in 2016. As a self-professed “never Trumper,” I viewed him as a brash egomaniac whose off-putting personality was just too much.
Even though I’m an evangelical Christian and usually vote Republican, my conscience wouldn’t allow me to punch “R” for President in 2016 (for the record, I voted third party).
Fast forward to 2020 and a vocal contingent of public figures still cling tightly to their never-Trump position.
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Without mentioning Trump by name, evangelical pastor John Piper describes “flagrant boastfulness, vulgarity, immorality, and factiousness” that “infect whole cultures” as character traits that disqualify a candidate from receiving his vote.
Senator Ben Sasses recently blasted the President’s “rage tweeting” and even claims Trump has “flirted with white supremacists.”
Taking a line from never-Trumpers, I definitely don’t condone the President’s coarse language and sometimes off-putting demeanor.
And while some of Trump’s hard-core supporters chortle at his verbal bomb-throwing, I cringe when he resorts to excessively harsh rhetoric.
Although I refused to vote for Trump in 2016, I now strongly support his re-election. Let me explain.
While I don’t excuse the President’s personality flaws, I just can’t agree that these disqualifies him from re-election.
In response to Christians who feel Trump is “too sinful” to receive their vote, I would like to point out that every candidate for President (including Biden) is a sinner. True, some sins may be more public than others, but the Bible reminds us that all have sinned.
I’m not voting for Trump because he’s some wonderful Christian. I’m not even sure whether he is a Christian in the evangelical sense of the word, and he often lacks what the Bible describes as “fruit of the Spirit.”
I’m voting for Trump because many of the public policies he advocates and has actually enacted are consistent with biblical values such as defending the unborn, supporting Israel, and upholding law-and-order in the face of lawlessness in our streets.
But in addition to these obvious issues, I’d like to consider another set of the President’s accomplishments that don’t get the attention they deserve.
For many years, the Democratic Party championed itself as “the people’s party,” claiming to help the poor, minorities, and working class Americans. By contrast, the Republicans were typically portrayed as the “party of the rich.”
While some Republicans have joined Democrats in resisting the President’s agenda, there have been more advances under Trump for underprivileged and working-class Americans than possibly any previous administration.
For one, Trump pushed through the biggest tax reform legislation in decades. This resulted in across-the-board tax cuts with the per-child tax credit and standard deduction being doubled, resulting in more dollars in the pockets of working families.
An astounding seven million new jobs were created under Trump’s first three years, including more than 500,000 new manufacturing jobs. Unemployment fell to an all-time low, including the lowest levels in history for blacks, Hispanics and Asians.
Trump's policies also created 8,800 Opportunity Zones, sparking a whopping $75 billion of investment in underserved communities. Not only that, but the poverty rate dropped to the lowest level in 60 years.
President Trump has also done much to increase educational opportunities for poor and minority communities. He is responsible for increased funding for historically black colleges and universities, and supports school choice to improve education for inner city kids.
Sen. Sasse’s “white supremacist” accusation notwithstanding, polling shows the President has made major inroads with black voters and is likely to receive significantly more support from black voters than he did in 2016.
On another crucial issue, Trump has done more to fight human trafficking than any previous administration.
Ivanka Trump has taken an active role in fighting trafficking, calling it “an ugly stain on civilization.”
The President has signed eight bills into law designed to combat trafficking, as well as two executive orders, one related to child trafficking and the other to fight international trafficking.
No country can be considered great that leaves people vulnerable to depraved predators who traffic in human lives, and Trump has made this a top priority of his administration.
Finally, the President has made great strides in fighting religious persecution at home and around the world.
From actively working to free pastors imprisoned in other lands, to sanctioning communist regimes that quash religious freedom, Trump has fought to ensure people around the world are free to practice their religion without fear of government persecution.
The President has also issued an executive order on International Religious Freedom, signaling America's strong commitment to stopping persecution and making religious freedom a foreign policy priority to be advanced on many fronts.
I understand why some criticize the President’s brash personality, but to be fair we also should recognize his many accomplishments and promises kept from the 2016 campaign.
From increased economic and educational opportunities for the poor and minorities, to fighting the evil of human trafficking and working to stop religious persecution, President Trump has done much to advance the cause of human dignity and freedom.
These are some of the top reasons I’ve changed my mind from a “never Trumper” in 2016 to a pro-Trump voter in 2020.
David Kincaid has a master's degree in political science with emphases in political philosophy and biopolitics.
