ERLC Contributor Says It's Better For Pro-Life Conservatives to Vote for Pro-Choice Democrats Because "Social Threats"
Michael Gerson is a contributor to the Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) led by Democrat, Russell Moore, and Gerson is highly promoted on the SBC-funded ERLC website, has appeared in several podcasts with Moore, and is also heavily promoted in the ERLC's sister ministry, The Gospel Coalition.
In a recent op-ed in the Washington Post, Gerson argued that not only is it okay for pro-life conservatives to vote for a pro-choice Democrat, but in the case of Donald Trump, it's better. His piece, titled It is difficult for pro-lifers to vote Democrat. But it’s better than Trump, he argues that it would be better to vote pro-choice Democrat over Trump "particularly when the social threat they oppose with their vote is more immediate than the long-term influence of their vote on the number of abortions."
Arguing that Andrew Walker, another ERLC contributor who recently (somewhat) defended Evangelicals who voted for Donald Trump based on a desire to protect life, he says that Walker "overestimates the amount of moral angst amongst evangelical Trump supporters." In other words, he argues that people who voted for Trump didn't do so because they actually care about protecting life, but instead implying that conservatives vote for him because he promises to "jail his enemies."
Of course, as with all neo-Marxist progressives, Gerson elevates social justice causes, particularly immigration, above the various issues of conservatism and argues that because the president doesn't have "immediate power to end abortion," we should consider voting for a Democrat because the president does have the power to "immediately dehumanize" illegal immigrants.
Then, he argues that "pro-lifers in the United States are going to win the abortion debate only if we persuade enough people to join our side of the argument. We are not going to prevail by gaining power and imposing our view. We can make changes at the margin using legislative majorities and executive power, but these are very marginal. Ultimately, we have a fundamentally persuasive task, requiring us to think about how our arguments look to people with different views. To have those arguments associated with Trump — and thus with misogyny, racism and xenophobia — is not likely to be helpful."
He then ends by arguing that Christians need to "act in ways that do not undermine the reputation of the Gospel." So, let me break down his entire argument for you:
Trump is a xenophobe because he believes in the rule of law at the border, so we should vote Democrat.
Trump is racist because ... he doesn't actually give a reason ... so we should vote Democrat.
Trump is a misogynist because ... he doesn't give a reason for that either ... so we should vote Democrat.
Trump can't stop abortion by himself, so we should vote for pro-choice Democrats who, by the way, will stack the Supreme Court with pro-choice activists.
Trump is immoral, so we should vote for pro-choice, pro-LGBTQ, pro lawlessness, pro-theft, pro-feminist, anti-freedom Democrats who are hell-bent on ending the freedom of Christian expression in this country.
"It would be difficult for a pro-life citizen to be an enthusiastic and loyal Democrat, even if my case is correct," Gerson says, "But it is possible to imagine circumstances in which voting for a Democrat would be preferable to endorsing immediate harm to the country by a Republican. And we are in exactly such a circumstance."Never once does he actually make a case backing up his claim of "immediate harm to the country by a Republican."
Let’s be clear: your political positions, activism, or support have no bearing on your salvation–zero. However, if you claim to be a Christian, transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit and bought by the blood of Jesus Christ, the Scriptures say that you will be given a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26) and you are being sanctified unto good works (Ephesians 2:10).
So let me spell this out for you. This means you cannot be a Christian while supporting the slaughter of innocent children, gay rights, gay propaganda, “gay Christianity,” theft (redistribution of wealth), lawlessness (i.e. open borders), a complete and total lack of individual responsibility (i.e. nanny state welfare system, single-payer insurance, etc.), or the endless sweeping away of our right to worship God freely. If you support this godless ideology or support candidates that do, don’t expect me to treat you as a fellow Christian.
Folks, this is who our Southern Baptist leaders are platforming.