Hundreds gather in church auditorium in Raleigh at ‘Evangelicals for Trump’ rally
About 500 people crowded into the auditorium at the RFA church in Raleigh for an “Evangelicals for Trump” rally Friday afternoon.
Cheers, whistles and chants erupted in the auditorium as President Donald Trump’s son, Eric Trump, and Paula White, the pastor who is Trump’s spiritual advisor, addressed the crowd.
According to the Pew Research Center, evangelical Protestants made up roughly 35% of North Carolina’s population in 2014, and make up just over 25% of the population nationwide. They also make up a large section of Trump’s voter base. More than four out of five white evangelical voters voted for him over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election, according to Pew.
And while Trump’s approval among white evangelical voters has dropped, eight in 10 of them still say they would vote for him, according to a Pew study from June 2020.
Eric Trump said freedom of religion is what draws evangelicals to his father.
“Faith in this country is totally under attack,” he said in an interview with The News & Observer. “During COVID, people were allowed to open liquor stores, but they couldn’t worship.”
Trump said the state of North Carolina is very important to him. His wife graduated from N.C. State University and his daughter is named Carolina. “My daughter is named after the state,” he said. “It is a state that we care about a lot.”
Trump also weighed in on the court case over absentee ballots that is headed for the Supreme Court. He said there shouldn’t be more time for mail-in ballots to come in, despite the pandemic, so that people are not kept waiting on the results of the election.
“You don’t know on Nov. 12 or Nov. 9 or Nov. 7, depending on the state,” he said. “You know the night of the election, and that’s how it’s always been.”
Many more people are voting by mail this year than in past years, so it could take longer for results to become clear.
At the event in Raleigh, many people wore masks when they entered the building, but as they sat down, many of the masks slid down under chins or hung from a single ear. The signature red “Make America Great Again” hats were specks in the crowd. Red T-shirts were far more common. One said “Pro-Life,” another had a red, white and blue cross that said “Stand for America.”
North Carolina limits indoor mass gatherings to 25 people as a precaution against spread of coronavirus, but there are exceptions for activities protected by the First Amendment, such as political events.
The event opened with a band performing “God Bless America,” creating the feel of a concert as supporters stood up and clapped along with the music. Jonathan Cain from the band Journey, who is White’s husband, sang and spoke in support of the president.
North Carolina Supreme Court Justice Paul Newby, a candidate for chief justice, sat in the audience.
Religious leaders, some from North Carolina, took the stage to speak in support of Trump. They praised his accomplishments as president and said the Democrats were attacking faith. They praised Amy Coney Barrett, Trump’s nominee to fill the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s vacated seat on the Supreme Court.
Faith and Freedom Coalition founder Ralph Reed, a prominent voice among evangelicals, called for Barrett and the other justices to strike down Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision which legalized abortion nationwide.
“It was imposed on us,” he said. “She is a woman who loves God and Jesus Christ and doesn’t apologize for it,” he said about Barrett. The crowd exploded in applause.
Evangelicals on Trump
Evangelical Christians attending the event said they support Trump for his stance against abortion. Rob Fuhrer, 61, worked at IBM for 38 years, and now, he and his wife, Ellen Fuhrer, 58, own a small lawn business. They voted for Ted Cruz in the primary in 2016, and for Trump in the general election.
In an interview after the event, the Zebulon couple said their political beliefs are based on Biblical principles. Trump’s pro-life stance is one of the main reasons they support him, they said.
“And keeping America great and not going socialist,” Rob Fuhrer said. Ellen Fuhrer said she appreciates that Trump is fiscally conservative.
They said they did not mind some of the things Trump has said and done in the past, including his divorces. They said they “don’t know much about” Trump’s non-disclosure agreement with adult film actress Stormy Daniels. But they said Trump deserves forgiveness.
“That is why Jesus died for our sins,” Ellen Fuhrer said.
Rafael Ramos, 52, a retired New York Police Department officer and evangelical who now lives in Wake Forest, said he supports Trump for his pro-life position. “Overall he’s done a pretty good job,” Ramos said. “He’s definitely an improvement on Hillary or what we’re seeing right now with Biden.”
Ramos says he also likes what Trump has done with the economy, but does not like all his policies and everything he says.
“He may not be the best speaker and he’s a little rough around the edges,” Ramos said. “There’s some things that I didn’t believe in like he didn’t believe in DACA.”
Trump has tried to end the Obama-era program Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, which offers deportation protection to some immigrants brought to the country illegally as children.
However, what won Ramos over is Trump’s support for law enforcement.
Ramos said Trump’s past divorces and the agreement with Stormy Daniels are not going to influence the way he votes.
“Everybody is a sinner and we must learn to forgive others,” Ramos said. “I’m not voting for him because he’s a great guy, I’m voting for him because of what he’s done so far.”