The editorial in Christianity Today called Trump’s Twitter feed “a near perfect example of a human being who is morally lost and confused.”
President Donald Trump on Friday lashed out against Christianity Today a day after the evangelical magazine published an editorial calling for his removal from office over his “profoundly immoral” conduct.
In a pair of tweets Friday morning criticizing the editorial, Trump called the famously-conservative magazine “far left,” said it “knows nothing about reading a perfect transcript,” and referred to it as ET.
A far left magazine, or very “progressive,” as some would call it, which has been doing poorly and hasn’t been involved with the Billy Graham family for many years, Christianity Today, knows nothing about reading a perfect transcript of a routine phone call and would rather…..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 20, 2019
The magazine was founded in 1956 by the late, right-wing evangelist Billy Graham and calls itself “a trusted beacon spotlighting the way in which Christians can live gospel lives for the strengthening of church and society.” It boasts a readership of five million.
Thursday’s editorial, written by outgoing editor-in-chief Mark Galli, was bluntly titled “Trump Should Be Removed from Office” and called for the president’s ouster to happen either through a vote to impeach in the Senate or by the results of the ballot box in the 2020 election.
“The president of the United States attempted to use his political power to coerce a foreign leader to harass and discredit one of the president’s political opponents,” Galli wrote of the Ukraine affair. “That is not only a violation of the Constitution; more importantly, it is profoundly immoral.”
“His Twitter feed alone—with its habitual string of mischaracterizations, lies, and slanders—is a near perfect example of a human being who is morally lost and confused,” Galli continued.
The House’s impeachment proceedings, according to Galli, “have made it absolutely clear, in a way the Mueller investigation did not, that President Trump has abused his authority for personal gain and betrayed his constitutional oath. The impeachment hearings have illuminated the president’s moral deficiencies for all to see.”
Addressing the evangelicals still backing Trump, Galli wrote: “Remember who you are and whom you serve.”
“To use an old cliché,” added Galli, “it’s time to call a spade a spade, to say that no matter how many hands we win in this political poker game, we are playing with a stacked deck of gross immorality and ethical incompetence.”
Speaking to CNN‘s “New Day” Friday, Galli said he had little hope the editorial would sway the minds of Trump’s evangelical base.
“The fact of the matter is that Christianity Today is not read by Christians on the far right, by evangelicals on the far right,” he said. “So, they’re going to be as dismissive of the magazine as President Trump has shown to be.”