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COLUMN BY JAN HINDSLEY

In the past month, you have published two articles by Polk Culpepper concerning the future of the Republican Party, the support of evangelical Christians, the attack on the Capitol and the future of our democracy.  These articles were full of misinformation and a total lack of understanding about why nearly half of Americans who voted in November supported Donald Trump.

I will start by pointing out what I believe are blatant mistakes in his perception of what occurred on Jan. 6 and what is happening today.  There were not “millions” storming the Capitol — federal officials estimate there were about 800 people. The attack began before Trump finished his speech and it has been shown that many of those who participated had planned the attack long in advance.  Despite the fact that Nancy Pelosi had been informed of these plans, no additional police or troops were brought in to protect our Capitol.  This mob included right-wing extremists from a variety of backgrounds, including “neo-charismatic Christians,” most of whom practiced their faith outside the mainstream denominations. The vast majority of the mainstream religious leaders of all faiths strongly condemned what occurred that day.  Religious fundamentalism is a plague to all societies but is not limited to the Christian faith.  You only have to remember 9/11 and observe what has been taking place in the Middle East to support this statement.

In a recent article, Newt Gingrich states, ” No matter what the accusations against former President Trump, his base can’t leave him because the alternative is so unacceptable to them.”  He goes on to say that according to a Rasmussen poll, 72% of the American people agree “the political elites believe they are superior to everyday Americans.” Those that voted against Joe Biden in the last election did not worship Donald Trump, but, again as Newt Gingrich says, were followers of “Trumpism”, a rejection of the power of billionaires, large corporations, the media, politicians and entertainment and sports figures. Corruption by the left-wing elites is not acceptable.  Governor Cuomo’s cover-up over the nursing home virus deaths, Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the beauty parlor, California Governor Gavin Newsom’s dinner with lobbyists while closing restaurants to the public and John Kerry flying on his private plane to receive a reward for his work against global warming are just a few examples of this.  The list goes on.

The recent executive orders of President Biden have only increased the support for the policies of the previous administration.  These orders include tax-funded abortions, eliminating Title IX protection in women’s sports and canceling the Keystone Pipeline, destroying thousands of jobs and raising the dangers of pollution when oil is transported by train or truck.   President Biden has stopped the building of the wall between Mexico and the U.S., thus opening the borders to thousands more illegal immigrants. In addition, he is attempting to tie the hands of ICE in deporting aliens convicted of such crimes as domestic violence, sexual assault, vehicular homicide and child abuse, to name a few.  The list goes on in an attempt to reverse nearly everything Trump’s administration did in the preceding four years.  Heaven help us if the Democrats’  $1.9 trillion relief bill is enacted.  Besides the debt that will plague our children for years to come, it includes a raise in the minimum wage to $15 per hour.  It only takes an Economics 101 course to learn why that will eliminate thousands of jobs and result in inflationary costs to Americans, hurting the poor more than anyone else.

Yes, Mr. Culpepper, this is a dangerous time for Christians.  It is also a dangerous time for non-Christians, not because of our religious leaders, but because of the elite community who believe they know better than we how we should live, what we should believe and worst of all, what we should be told.  It will be our responsibility to search for the truth and demand honesty from those in power. We must know the Constitution and remember that our nation was established and must remain a nation under God.

Jan Hindsley is a Washington resident.