Race and gender matter a lot to Christian nationalists. What doesn't matter so much, however, is God. [View all]

Jim Jordan's curious rise: A tale of how Christian nationalism consumed the GOP
It's not really about Jesus, so much as a belief that only members of their lily white tribe are "real" Americans
By AMANDA MARCOTTE

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Because so many conservatives chatter incessantly about prayer, the Bible, and Jesus, there's a tendency in the Beltway press to treat religion as the foundation that all other right wing beliefs are built on. But that reading is backwards. In reality, faith is the window dressing draped around an ideology of hate, meant to pretty up an ugly worldview.

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The holdouts are getting most attention, but the real story here is how most Republicans have come to support Jordan, a proud bully who does not care about legislation, only tearing down Democrats through any means necessary. Jordan's rise to this be even a plausible Speaker isn't just another piece of proof that the GOP has been taken over by Christian nationalists. It also tells us quite a bit about what Christian nationalism is — and how, despite the name, it has little to do with sincere belief in God or in the teachings of Jesus Christ.

Big Lie is a front for the real belief, which is that most Joe Biden voters shoudn't have had the right to vote to begin with, that their skin color or religious identity or sexual orientation or political leanings disqualify them from being "real" Americans. That's why the Big Lie is impervious to factual correction. Proof the election wasn't stolen doesn't matter, because what they're mad about is that people they hate legally voted.

Jordan, like Trump, is popular on the right because, not despite, of his inability to even playact the part of the loving Christian. He's a loudmouthed bully who believes victory can only be gained through crushing the opposition. He cannot cooperate with Democrats, because that would mean conceding that they have a right to exist.

the rest:
https://www.salon.com/2023/10/19/jim-jordans-curious-rise-a-tale-of-how-christian-nationalism-consumed-the/