Religion is causing 'yet another crack' in MAGA movement

Newly elected Pope Leo XIV, Cardinal Robert Prevost of the United States appears on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican, May 8, 2025. REUTERS/Yara Nardi

Donald Trump's MAGA movement has pushed policies that conflict with "simple human decency," while claiming to stand for Christian values. According to a new analysis from Salon, this is creating "yet another crack in the MAGA coalition," as actual religious leaders and groups push back against Trump's agenda, and as the party risks alienating a significantly growing evangelical demographic.

Writing in a piece published Tuesday, Salon columnist Hannah Digby Parton extensively broke down the religious pushback Trump's second term has received, despite claiming to represent Christian values. The most notable has come from the Roman Catholic Church, as the newly elected Pope Leo XIV, the first American pontiff, has spoken out strongly against Trump's inhumane treatment of immigrants. This, in turn, has prompted broader pushback from other Catholic leaders.

"Leo... has called the treatment of undocumented immigrants extremely disrespectful and implored that they be treated humanely," Parton wrote. "The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops issued a 'special message' condemning the policy, saying 'we oppose the indiscriminate mass deportation of people. We pray for an end to dehumanizing rhetoric and violence, whether directed at immigrants or at law enforcement.' The pope’s decision to replace the retiring Timothy Dolan, the pro-Trump Archbishop of New York, with Ronald Hicks, a pro-migrant bishop from Illinois, underscores his intentions."

Parton suggested that Trump's relentless targeting of Latin American individuals as part of his immigration crackdowns represents a "crack in the MAGA coalition," given that Latinos are the fastest-growing evangelical demographic and broke for Trump in 2024 by huge margins. Targeting them so heavily now might directly conflict with the MAGA movement's "self-preservation."

"... This represents yet another crack in the MAGA coalition, even if they don’t acknowledge it," Parton continued. "As a matter of self-preservation, one might have assumed that the Southern Baptists would be supportive of Latino immigrants, especially since they are the fastest-growing group of American evangelicals, the majority of whom voted for Trump in 2024. Evangelical communities are also expanding rapidly in Latin America. Only four percent of that population identified as evangelical 40 years ago; today about 20% do. It seems short-sighted to be so hostile to a group that represents the future of the church. The Southern Baptist leadership’s unwillingness to even engage the question shows that the fault line is present and they don’t know how to deal with it."

Above all, aside from any religious affiliations, Parton argued that "the real schism" in the US currently is between those who understand "simple human decency" and those who do not.

"It’s between the people who understand that and those who gleefully indulge in an orgy of cruelty and inhumanity, even while they display the trappings of Christianity and brag about their piety," Parton concluded.

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