{"id":2703897,"date":"2026-11-11T09:06:57","date_gmt":"2026-11-11T14:06:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaigndemocrats-its-only-christian-nationalism-when-conservatives-do-it\/"},"modified":"2026-11-11T09:15:13","modified_gmt":"2026-11-11T14:15:13","slug":"utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaigndemocrats-its-only-christian-nationalism-when-conservatives-do-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaigndemocrats-its-only-christian-nationalism-when-conservatives-do-it\/","title":{"rendered":"It&#8217;s Only &#8216;Christian Nationalism&#8217; When Conservatives Do It"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Futm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaigndemocrats-its-only-christian-nationalism-when-conservatives-do-it%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2703897&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Democrats railed against a rising \u201cChristian nationalism\u201d yet ran openly religious campaigns, framing policy through Christian faith. Leaders like James Talarico adn Adam Hamilton said their faith drives compassion, justice, and public service. The author calls this hypocritical: while accusing the right of mixing religion and politics, the left promotes a progressive Christianity or \u201csocial gospel\u201d that endorses abortion, same-sex marriage, and transgender policies. He labels it a false gospel that contradicts customary Christian teaching and has persuaded many voters.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The Democrats in this most recent election ran a campaign attacking an ascendent \u201cChristian nationalism,\u201d which they warned would soon turn America into a theocracy. \u201cI define Christian nationalism as the worship of power \u2014 social power, economic power, political power \u2014 in the name of Christ,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/opinions\/2026\/10\/30\/midterms-james-talarico-others-revive-progressive-christianity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">declared<\/a> Texas Democrat James Talarico, now senator-elect. \u201cI think Christian nationalism, this idea that we\u2019ve got to take America back for Jesus, is one of the most dangerous things to our democracy,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.4029tv.com\/article\/arkansas-us-house-district-3-hocevar-ryerse-womack\/73403557\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">cautioned<\/a> Arkansas Democrat Robb Ryerse, who unsuccessfully ran for a House seat this midterm election. Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., <a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/video\/2026\/08\/20\/rep_jared_huffman_marxist_democrats_are_a_small_minority_christian_nationalists_want_a_full_blown_theocracy.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">asserted<\/a>: \u201cThe hardcore Christian nationalists are trying to topple democracy. They want a full-blown theocracy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yet, in fact, the Democrats ran a quite unapologetically religious platform that routinely sought to contextualize their politics as informed by Christianity, something that was <a href=\"https:\/\/news.wjct.org\/national-news\/2026-09-27\/these-democrats-are-making-christianity-a-centerpiece-of-their-midterm-campaigns\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">not lost<\/a> even on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/hate-of-media-surges-as-democratic-bias-grows\/\" title=\"Hate of media surges as Democratic bias grows\">legacy liberal media<\/a>. As much as the left seeks to portray the right as beholden to religious forces that imperil the so-called separation of church and state \u2014 an idea, by the way, that gained traction via rhetoric from such former conservative evangelicals as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/2024\/09\/uneasy-conscience-christian-nationalism-donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Russell Moore<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/02\/25\/opinion\/christian-nationalism.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">David French<\/a> \u2014 they are simultaneously quite cynically projecting their own version of Christian nationalism. It\u2019s a double standard as hypocritical as it is ridiculous.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>The Democrats Wouldn\u2019t Shut Up About Faith and Politics<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>\u201cWe as Christians, we as people of faith from all traditions, have a responsibility to take our faith from the sanctuary to the streets to not just love God, but to love neighbor,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/baptistnews.com\/article\/talarico-if-you-are-neutral-you-are-taking-the-side-of-the-powerful\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> Talarico on the campaign trail. \u201cMy faith in Jesus leads me,\u201d he said, \u201cto reject Christian nationalism and leads me to recommit myself to the project, the unfinished project of a multiracial, multicultural democracy.\u201d That\u2019s an interesting critique, given he elsewhere <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/video\/a-conversation-with-rep-james-talarico-zv0qhs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">acknowledged<\/a>: \u201cAll of this informs what I do at the capitol, it\u2019s why I\u2019m in public service, it\u2019s why I try to make life easier for my neighbors, which is what I\u2019m called to do as a Christian.\u201d So, when Talarico applies his religious beliefs to his politics, it\u2019s following Christ; when his opponents do it, it\u2019s fascism. He\u2019s not alone.<\/p>\n<p>Kansas Democrat Adam Hamilton, now senator-elect, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/blogs\/politico-press\/2026\/10\/05\/full-transcript-kansas-democratic-senate-nominee-adam-hamilton-01106808\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">argued<\/a> that he and Talarico think faith \u201clooks like caring for the poor, looks like compassion, looks like mercy, it looks like not bullying and picking on people, it looks like not starting foreign wars, you know, initiating those wars.\u201d For Hamilton, it\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.christianpost.com\/books\/adam-hamilton-releases-ad-opposing-socialism-and-open-borders.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">even about economic policies<\/a>: \u201cWhen you think about that \u2014 the issue of who gets what, when and how \u2014 that is a very moral issue. Those are questions that have to do with justice. They have to do with our world view. They have to do with our faith.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There are plenty more examples. \u201cMy faith teaches me that you show up and you listen. That\u2019s what I do as a pastor, and it\u2019s what I do as an elected official,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/sarahforiowa.com\/quick\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">promised<\/a> Iowa Democrat Sarah Trone Garriott, now U.S. Rep.-elect. \u201cThe policy decisions that I make and the way in which I see the world is based out of that [religious faith],\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.iowapublicradio.org\/political-news\/2025-08-19\/democrat-lindsay-james-congress-iowa-2nd-district\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">explained<\/a> fellow U.S. Rep.-elect and Iowa Democrat Lindsey James. \u201cIt\u2019s not based out of a political party or a political philosophy.\u201d Tennessee Democrat Anna Golladay, who lost her bid for a House seat, had <a href=\"https:\/\/annagolladay.com\/public-statements\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">told voters<\/a>: \u201cI am running for Congress \u2026 as exactly what I am: a faith leader, a small business owner, and a person whose faith shapes how I think about caring for my neighbors.\u201d And, perhaps most explicitly, Texas Democrat Frederick Haynes, now U.S. Rep.-elect, <a href=\"https:\/\/religionnews.com\/2026\/07\/28\/blessed-frederick-haynes-pastor-and-candidate-on-his-politics-faith-and-health\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pronounced<\/a>: \u201cI feel that this is just an extension of the calling, because I see this as ministry.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2><strong>A Curious Revival and Reversal<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Now, I don\u2019t know about you, but describing one\u2019s political career as \u201cministry,\u201d one\u2019s policy decisions as based on one\u2019s religious faith, and applying one\u2019s interpretations of the teachings of Christ to all manner of U.S. policy certainly <em>sounds<\/em> like a pretty significant intersection of religion and politics. Indeed, NPR in a September piece <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlrn.org\/national-politics\/2026-09-27\/these-democrats-are-making-christianity-a-centerpiece-of-their-midterm-campaigns\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">noted<\/a> that many Democrats were \u201cmaking Christianity a centerpiece of their midterm campaigns.\u201d In late October, the Washington Post <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/opinions\/2026\/10\/30\/midterms-james-talarico-others-revive-progressive-christianity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a> that \u201cprogressive Christianity is making a comeback\u201d and that \u201cthe Christian Social Gospel is challenging the Trumpian right.\u201d A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2026\/11\/06\/have-democrats-cracked-code-religion\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">separate Nov. 6 piece at the WaPo<\/a> suggested that Democrats had \u201ccracked the code on religion\u201d and that \u201cDemocrats are already celebrating their gains with Christians as proof of concept that incorporating faith into campaigns resonates with voters.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This is quite a shift. Back in August 2024, the same Democratic Congressman Jared Huffman <a href=\"https:\/\/freethoughtcaucus-huffman.house.gov\/media\/in-the-news\/democrats-are-party-religious-freedom-not-obligatory-faith-talk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">opined<\/a> that Democrats must defend secular government against Republican religious influence: \u201cWe vigorously defend the constitutional \u2018wall of separation\u2019 between church and state \u2014 the most essential pillar of religious freedom.\u201d No less than then-Sen. Barack Obama in 2004 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sojo.net\/articles\/transcript-barack-obama-and-god-factor-interview\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">told a journalist<\/a>: \u201cIn my own public policy, I\u2019m very suspicious of religious certainty expressing itself in politics\u2026. I think there is an enormous danger on the part of public figures to rationalize or justify their actions by claiming God\u2019s mandate.\u201d Democratic Sens. Dianne Feinstein, <a href=\"https:\/\/cgi.pbs.org\/now\/transcript\/transcript227_full.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Charles Schumer<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/wnet\/firing-line\/video\/sheldon-whitehouse-8zjxyo\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Sheldon Whitehouse<\/a> have all decried Christians who they warned would allow their faith to influence political or legal decisions, Feinstein most famously with her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncregister.com\/news\/democrats-grilling-of-judicial-nominee-denounced-as-anti-catholic-bigotry\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">bizarre statement<\/a> to then-Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett that the \u201cdogma lives loudly within you.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2><strong>The Left\u2019s Own Christian Nationalism<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Now, it would seem, the \u201cdogma\u201d lives loudly in many Democrats. But this is a dogma of progressive Christianity and the \u201csocial gospel.\u201d It is a dogma that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.texastribune.org\/2025\/09\/16\/james-talarico-texas-senate-democrat-religion-christianity-viral\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">celebrates<\/a> abortion because \u201ccreation has to be done with consent.\u201d It is a dogma that <a href=\"https:\/\/transcripts.cnn.com\/show\/se\/date\/2019-10-10\/segment\/03\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">says<\/a> gay marriage brings us closer to God. And it is a dogma that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/media\/texas-dem-nominee-james-talarico-invokes-faith-defend-abortion-rights-bible-silent-abortion\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">preaches<\/a> that \u201cGod is non-binary,\u201d and that policies that promote transgender ideology for children <a href=\"https:\/\/www.metroweekly.com\/2023\/11\/kentucky-governor-calls-transgender-kids-children-of-god\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">enjoy divine approbation<\/a>. It is, in fact, a false gospel, one that brings not eternal life and freedom from sin, but enslavement to our passions and death.<\/p>\n<p>There is, of course, a tremendous hypocrisy and double-standard with this approach. And there is the fact that celebrating abortion, homosexuality, and transgenderism as objective goods flies in the face of teaching across a host of Christian traditions \u2014 and also brings destruction in its wake, as we already knew through 50 years of <em>Roe v. Wade<\/em> and the medical establishment\u2019s pro-trans recommendations that scarred a generation of American youth. Perhaps most interesting is that the left has itself cultivated and embraced its own version of Christian nationalism, one based on a language of tolerance and acceptance. It is a false gospel. But at least this year, it is one that has deceived a fair share of the American electorate.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Casey Chalk is a senior contributor at The Federalist and an editor and columnist at The New Oxford Review. He is a regular contributor at many publications and the author of three books, including the upcoming &#8220;Wisdom From the Cross: How Jesus\u2019 Seven Last Words Teach Us How to Live (and Die)&#8221; (Sophia Institute Press, 2026).<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dems warn of Christian nationalism; Talarico defines it<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":658,"featured_media":2703898,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/JT3-e1794317084851.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[74842,4539,78253,76972],"class_list":["post-2703897","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","tag-christian-nationalism-2","tag-conservatives","tag-culture-wars-2","tag-religion-in-politics"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/JT3-e1794317084851.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2703897","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/658"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2703897"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2703897\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2703901,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2703897\/revisions\/2703901"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2703898"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2703897"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2703897"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2703897"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}