evangelical christians

Back in 1999 when Donald Trump was flirting with a presidential run, he was pro-abortion rights. In an interview on Meet the Press with NBC's Tim Russert, the New York real estate developer said he didn't like abortion, but he wouldn't ban it.

Fast forward almost two decades, and Trump was running for the republican presidential nomination, and he had a very different stance on abortion, even suggesting in an MSNBC town hall meeting that women should be punished for seeking abortions.

Trump ultimately won the presidency with the support of white Evangelical voters, many of whom wanted to see Roe v. Wade overturned. Six years after he won, the Supreme Court justices Trump appointed helped deliver exactly that.

Now as Trump mounts another run for the White House, abortion rights are on the ballot and winning. And Trump has once again evolved his stance on abortion. Is it a political calculation?

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Today we’re talking about a key voting bloc in this year’s elections: white evangelical Christian voters. In 2016 and 2020, they helped Donald Trump rise to power. NPR’s Sarah McCammon, author of “Exvangelicals,” discusses why evangelicals continue to back Trump, her personal journey leaving evangelicalism and the economic systems built around the evangelical movement.

We’ll also talk about the Maryland bridge collapse and the state of U.S. infrastructure. Plus, Neil King Jr., author of the memoir “American Ramble,” answers the Make Me Smart question.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• • “‘You gotta be tough’: White evangelicals remain enthusiastic about Donald Trump” from NPR

• • “How younger voters will impact elections: What is happening to the white evangelical vote?” from Brookings

• • “Why White Evangelicals Stuck with Trump” from the University of Chicago Divinity School

• • “Latinos Will Determine the Future of American Evangelicalism” from The Atlantic

• • “Bridge Collapse in Baltimore Puts an Election Year Spotlight on Infrastructure” from The New York Times

• • “Elon Musk’s Starlink Terminals Are Falling Into the Wrong Hands” from Bloomberg

We want to hear your answer to the Make Me Smart question. You can reach us at makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

The president delivered the remarks during his trip to Israel. An additional stop in Jordan to meet with Egypt's leader and the head of the Palestinian Authority was cancelled.

Majorities of both parties in the U.S. favor American support for Israel. And, despite an ascendant isolationist inclination within the Republican Party, the deeply rooted pro-Israel sentiment among the party's white evangelical base has remained steadfast.

This episode: White House correspondent Asma Khalid, campaign correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben, and national political correspondent Mara Liasson.

The podcast is produced by Casey Morell and Elena Moore. Our editor is Eric McDaniel. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.

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