Former president Donald Trump delivered a campaign speech at the National Religious Broadcasters convention in Tennessee on Thursday, promising the right-wing Christian audience that they will wield political power "at a level that you've never used it before" if he is returned to the White House in 2024.
Trump's audience and the larger convention were populated by the same religious-right activists who are regularly featured here on Right Wing Watch and who are planning to use a second Trump term to impose their Christian nationalist worldview on the nation. And based on Trump's remarks at the conference, he fully intends to give them more political power than they have ever had before.
"Today I come before you as a friend and an ally and a fellow believer to ask for your help and your support and your prayers for this country," Trump said. "I make you a simple promise: In my first term I fought for Christians harder than any president has ever done before, and I will fight even harder for Christians with four more years in the White House."
"We did things the likes of which nobody has ever done for Christians in this country, and I'm very proud of that and honored by it," he added. "Just think of what with God's help we already achieved in our historic first term under my leadership and working with you."
"For four years, we went through a great period [where] you were able to speak, and we're going to make that on a permanent basis," Trump continued. "Because you're the people we want to hear from: the pastors and the ministers and the rabbis. The people in this room are the people we want to hear from and they have to have a political voice."
"You have such power, but you really weren't allowed to use that power," Trump told the audience. "You're now allowed to use it. If I get in [to the White House], you're going to be using that power at a level that you've never used it before."
