Evangelical leader: Trump recently found a ‘relationship with Christ’
Donald Trump does not speak about his faith often, but a prominent church leader is suggesting that the billionaire businessman has a new-found bond with Christ.
James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family and a high-profile evangelical leader, said Trump recently forged and accepted a “relationship with Christ.”
In recent weeks, Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee, has sought to shore up support among evangelicals.
Despite winning over the support of a majority of evangelicals throughout the Republican primary, many remain divided and are concerned about the depth of his faith.
Trump met with hundreds of evangelical leaders, including Dobson and Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr., an early supporter, in New York this week.
“I don’t know when it was, but it has not been long,” Dobson said of what he described as Trump’s new closer relationship with Christ during an interview with a Pennsylvania church pastor. ”I believe he really made a commitment, but he’s a baby Christian.”
Trump, a Presbyterian, drew scorn from some religious leaders earlier this year after he inaccurately cited “Two” Corinthians during a speech at Falwell’s Liberty University. The more common expression is “Second” Corinthians.
During the meeting with evangelical leaders earlier in the week, Trump attacked Hillary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic nominee, saying “we don’t know anything about Hillary in terms of religion.”
However, over the years, Clinton has spoke openly about the role her faith has played in her life.
Despite his effort to rein in support from church leaders, some remain skeptical.
“We will be watching, listening and waiting to see how he continues to relate on the critical issues of life, family and religious liberty,” Paul Weber, president of the Family Policy Alliance, told The Times earlier this week.
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Trump and Clinton continue to struggle with unfavorable views
When it comes to policy and their visions for America, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton offer stark contrasts.
Yet with less than five months until election day, both are finding some commonality in an area that’s not ideal: They’re not well-liked.
More than candidates in past elections, Trump and Clinton are struggling to make voters like them, and polls suggest they’re having little success.
In a series of surveys released this week, Clinton and Trump amassed unfavorable numbers that hovered above 50%.
A CNN/ORC survey showed 60% said they had an unfavorable view of Trump, compared with 56% for Clinton. Meanwhile, a national poll from Monmouth University had Clinton’s unfavorable numbers at 52% and Trump’s at 57%, while a Rasmussen poll had both hovering around 60% dislike among voters.
Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric about, among others, Mexicans and Muslims, and questions surrounding Clinton’s use of a personal email account while overseeing the State Department, elicit negative views from voters, surveys have shown.
Moreover, the strong negative views of Trump and Clinton have created fodder for third-party candidates.
“We’ve been in a race to the bottom between the lesser and the greater evil, and all those things that we were told we should vote against,” Green Party candidate Jill Stein said on Saturday during an interview on CNN.
Libertarian Gary Johnson said this week he has no plans to jump into the fray.
“Really, stick to the issues, stick to issues that are facing this country,” he said during a town hall. “There are plenty.”
All things Trump
Few took Donald Trump’s campaign seriously when he started running for president, but the brash New York businessman bulldozed his way past every rival for the GOP nomination. He hopes to become the 45th president of the United States.
All things Clinton
Hillary Clinton is the first woman to top a major party’s presidential ticket. A former first lady, U.S. senator and secretary of State, the Democratic candidate hopes to become the 45th president of the United States.