The show delivering pro-Trump Christians their 'news directly from God': report

03 November 2024

In September, theologian Robert P. Jones noted in a Time op-ed that Donald Trump' "nostalgic diatribes about reclaiming a lost white Christian past fueled his rise to presidential power, and he has continued this strategy in 2024."

Following the 2020 election, Gallup reported that the AP VoteCast survey revealed "that 81% of White evangelical Protestant voters went for Trump," while 18% supported President Joe Biden. Furthermore, "The Edison exit polls estimate that 76% of White evangelicals voted for Trump, 24% for Biden," the analytics company added.

Gene Bailey — the host of a YouTube show called FlashPoint — is determined to help Trump keep the support of Christians this election.

In a Sunday, November 3 article, The Atlantic's Stephanie McCrummen reports that "hundreds of thousands of viewers" – three times a week — "stream their news directly from God" on the show, which "has emerged as the premier outlet for the most trusted prophets with the largest followings."

Having "watched hours and hours of episodes going back to its launch in September 2020" The Atlantic staff writer notes that "from the beginning, the show has framed politics as a great 'spiritual war,' launching "on the Victory Channel, a streaming platform and satellite-television network that is part of the well-funded empire of Kenneth Copeland, an old-guard televangelist in the multifaceted world of charismatic Christianity."

McCrummen adds, "Copeland himself never exactly belonged to the apostle-and-prophet crowd. But he was part of the broader mobilization of charismatic Christians behind Trump, and provided the most prominent prophets with the platform they needed to build a movement they likened to a new Great Awakening," like "Lance Wallnau, the chief marketer of the idea that God anointed Trump."

Wallnau likened "the march to the Capitol" on January 6 "as a 'giant Disney parade,' and said the violence had been carried out not by 'our people' but by antifa and Black Lives Matter, calling them 'the devil’s people,'" according to McCrummen.

McCrummen reports:

One of the many signs that FlashPoint is a departure from the usual televangelism is that the o in its logo looks like the view through a rifle scope. Another is that the audience is referred to as the 'FlashPoint Army.' A third is that the red phone is a hotline to Donald Trump. A fourth is that, sometimes, heaven sends not just news of the End Times, but earthly instructions. This was the case during the run-up to January 6, when FlashPoint was getting millions of views, and the prophets told the FlashPoint Army to claim the U.S. Capitol for God’s kingdom.

The Atlantic writer also notes:

Bailey has interviewed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and Trump himself. Most important, the show has become a kind of command center for the people Trump refers to as 'my Christians.' In a sense, FlashPoint is where God’s memo goes out, which makes it all the more noteworthy that, in recent weeks, the prophecies have become more apocalyptic.

One pastor who appeared on the show, McCrummen writes, "cast himself as a reporter," and claimed "he confirmed that the FBI had a busload of antifa people come in and infiltrate the rally."

Hank, Kunnemen, who McCrummen report is "a prophet from Omaha," said during his appearance: "We have a responsibility to report what we hear from heaven."

Bailey asked the Omaha prophet, "What’s God showing you?"

Kunnemen replied: "Big God, little devil. Big God, little corrupt Democrat rat. Big God, little Republican pathetic person that cannot stand for their democracy."

McCrummen notes, "People clapped. 'Here are your orders from heaven: Be strong, fear not … Your God will come with a vengeance,' Kunneman said, declaring FlashPoint to be 'part of the new spirit of truth in media that’s going to rise in the land.'"

The Atlantic's full report is available at this link (subscription required).

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