THE SET-UP: Evangelicals and Catholics are “quiet quitting” Trump. That’s per an Axios report linking the “uneasy” feeling they get from Trump’s “rhetoric and immigration policies” to the growing number of church leaders “subtly distancing themselves from MAGA — and taking some congregation members with them.”
Much of the evidence offered is anecdotal.
Rich Logis, a “Catholic ex-Trump supporter who founded a group called Leaving MAGA,” told Axios:
This year, the group says, its subscribers jumped from 1,500 to more than 35,000 by July. Logis linked that partly to fallout from the administration’s reluctance to release the Epstein files.
Doug Pagitt, a pastor and executive director of the progressive Christian group Vote Common Good, told Axios…
…that thousands of churches have downloaded his group’s support kit that gives advice on confronting Christian nationalism. “We know that there’s a lot of really quiet movements that are going on,” Pagitt said.
Dave Gibbons, lead pastor of the multiethnic Newsong Church in Santa Ana, Calif., told Axios…
…he’s talked with people quietly walking away from MAGA because of the mass deportations.
Although Axios admits it is difficult to know “precisely how many evangelicals are ‘quietly quitting,’” they also cite recent polling by the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) that shows the staunchest bloc of Trump supporters is starting to rethink their devotion:
Only 48% of Latino Protestants approve of Trump’s performance, a recent survey by the nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) found. Trump won 64% of Latino Protestants‘ votes in 2024, PRRI says.
White evangelicals still strongly approve of Trump (72%), but that’s down from the 85% who voted for him last year, PRRI found.
The 13% drop among White Evangelicals should not be underestimated. Electorally speaking, Trump cannot afford anything less than fully engaged Evangelicals leading a unified MAGA charge into the nation’s voting booth in next year’s midterms.
Suddenly, that doesn’t look as inevitable as it did in the days and weeks after he won a second term. MAGA’s hodge-podge of Evangelicals, Republicans, Crypto Bros, Gen Z Incels, Gen X wrestling fans, Grover Norquist fanboys, Israeli supremacists and Groypers have been held together by Trump’s specific brand of edgelord charisma and by their dogmatic distaste for the dismally discombobulated Democrats.
They were brought together largely under the banner of “America First.” Recent deviations from that simple, catchy statement have led to less-than-quiet questioning of Trump’s regime and the GOP.
The main MAGA divide is between self-described America First purists and pro-Israel Dispensationalists. It started with AG Pam Bondi’s bungling of the Epstein Files. Many MAGA devotees are convinced Epstein is an Israeli intel asset and Trump’s convoluted effort to keep those files secret broke many a MAGA fever. Yes, pro-Trump critics remain nominally pro-Trump by blaming underlings like Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel and now Speaker Mike Johnson. Regardless, Epstein’s files sparked a newly-recalibrated Tucker Carlson and angered many of the Bro Podcasters™ who rallied to Trump because they and their audiences despise what they see as an elite political racket … a racket he now seems to be protecting.
That was quickly followed by Trump joining-in on “another stupid war in the Middle East” … this time, it was Israel’s bombing campaign against Iran. Of course, the “stupid war” line is one of Trump’s greatest hits. His willingness to join in and his glee that he did lifted the veil on the “antiwar” champion’s true belligerence. It also appeared to purists like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene that America First had become Israel First.
And that was exacerbated by a breakthrough moment in the coverage of Gaza that, after many months of Israel purposefully killing entire families, finally put the plight of hungry Palestinians front and center on the big three networks’ evening newscasts.
That coverage lasted about 72 hours.
But although the networks turned away from those truths, the narrative was forever altered—particularly when Rep. Taylor Greene publicly called the culling in Gaza “a genocide.” A number of Bro Podcasters™ agreed and the rift opened into a full-blown split over Israel’s conduct and the question of genocide. Israel’s policy of intentional starvation along with the killing of aidseekers at one of the cynically concocted US-Israeli-run food distribution stations captured the alternative media’s attention.
When Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) told Tucker Carlson he first ran for Congress in 2012 “with the stated intention of being the leading defender of Israel in the United States Senate,” and then went on to say the Bible commands him to do so reflexively, it added the issue of AIPIC to a simmering stew that’s reaching a boil at the same time we’re hearing about Christians quiet quitting because of immigration and Trump’s authoritarian rhetoric.
Now the GOP has Mark Levin, Ben Shapiro and Sens. Ted Cruz and Lindsey Graham on one side and Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, Bro Podcasters™ and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene on the other. To be fair, MTG is charting her own course … and being careful to remind everyone she loves Trump. But she also recently criticized him (without naming him) for enriching his crypto buddies while Americans cannot afford healthcare. MTG is putting the economy on the frontburner by criticizing the economic bite of his tariffs and the conduct of his immigration raids, some of which are impacting businesses that rely on immigrant labor.
She’s perhaps the most dangerous to Trump, particularly now that she’s polishing her rough edges in media appearances on CNN, on Bill Maher’s show and on The Young Turks. She’s spreading her version of the Gospel of America First … and it contradicts the version Trump is implementing with an increasing impunity. Add Trump’s effort to ramp-up his immigration clampdown—which is a main reason cited for the aforementioned quiet quitting—and it’s hard to imagine Trump’s defying electoral history.
Simply put, if a 15% chunk of the MAGA Christian vote stays home on November 3, 2026, it is unlikely Trump will retain control of the House and continue to run afoul of the Congress’ heretofore unused constraints on Executive power.
Which may be why he’s suddenly grown an interest in “genocide” in Nigeria.
For the last three years, I’ve seen regular reports of Christians being massacred by Islamic extremists in Nigeria. The Christian Post, CBN News, Baptist Press, The Catholic News Agency and a host of Christian-themed websites publish story after story detailing the brutality. The number killed can be in excess of 100 … or more … and the number of stories they see in the Christian media is underlined by the lack of coverage on cable or broadcast news. It appears as if there is a systematic campaign to wipe out Nigeria’s Christians and that the Godless media is purposefully ignoring it.
For Trump … that’s an opportunity to reestablish his role as Defender Of The Faith and protector of the persecuted. Abortion is old news. He needs a new hook. He needs to shore up the foundation … and what better way than to appeal to the feeling of persecution that motived many of his Evangelical supporters back when he said his favorite Bible verse is “two Corinthians.” They didn’t vote for a Biblically literate man of faith … they voted for a bodyguard … someone to defend them against the changing face of America.
For Trump, Nigerian Muslims are a made-to-order villain and he’s got Crusader wannabe Pete Hegseth gearing-up for the fight. The irony is, of course, his threat against Nigeria sounds like another “stupid war.” As for the question of “genocide,” the story is, of course, complicated by many other factors that contribute to the killing—tribal divisions, divisions between farmers and herders, and divisions over access to water are among the factors that defy the simple, binary appeal of “us versus them.”
But that’s Trump’s sweet-spot and binary simplification is his specialty. Now, even if the news media is able to unpack and explain the various forces contributing to what will appear to FOX News consumer to be an organized campaign of genocide, Trump can simply say the explainers are covering-up the genocide because they hate Christians and America.
It will also be used to obfuscate what happened in Gaza. Anyone who claimed Gaza was a genocide, but refuses to say the same about Nigeria … will be labeled an “Antisemite” and an “Anti-Christian.” It’s also an opportunity for beleaguered Dispensationalists like Ted Cruz to go on the offense about a genocide they do believe in.
For my part, I am not ready to make a judgment on the veracity of the claim. Because Africa is poorly covered in the US news media, it’s hard to get a true sense of what’s happening. Because most Americans are completely ignorant of African history, complicated answers are likely to fall on deaf ears. And, I believe, Trump knows all of that … and, with his approval ratings eroding and his immigration campaign about to get a far more controversial, a Christian genocide is, he hopes, an effective misdirection. - jp
FYI: I added the satire story from Babylon Bee because it cuts right to the quick.
Christians In Nigeria Disguise Themselves As Palestinians So People Will Care About Them Being Genocided
https://babylonbee.com/news/christians-in-nigeria-disguise-themselves-as-palestinians-so-people-will-care-about-them-being-genocided
Missionaries Say Fulani Militias Orchestrate Systematic Attacks on Nigerian Christians
https://truthnigeria.com/2025/10/missionaries-say-fulani-militias-orchestrate-systematic-attacks-on-nigerian-christians/
Christians watch their families burned alive in Nigeria
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/11/03/christians-watch-their-families-burnt-alive-in-nigeria/
Nigeria: ‘Christian genocide’ or a crisis of narratives?
https://www.dw.com/en/nigeria-christianity-genocide-religion-boko-haram/a-74421780
Trump’s ignorance about Nigeria: The dangers of a manufactured ‘Christian genocide’
https://punchng.com/trumps-ignorance-about-nigeria-the-dangers-of-a-manufactured-christian-genocide/
An Imaginary ‘Christian Genocide’ in Nigeria? Trump Is All Over It
https://zeteo.com/p/an-imaginary-christian-genocide-in
Rep. Moore to Newsmax: Trump Doing ‘Lord’s Work’ to Stop Genocide in Nigeria
https://www.newsmax.com/newsmax-tv/riley-moore-newsmax-donald-trump/2025/11/03/id/1233074/
Alleged Christian Genocide: Obi slams Tinubu, APC amid Trump’s threat to deploy troops to Nigeria
https://gazettengr.com/alleged-christian-genocide-obi-slams-tinubu-apc-amid-trumps-threat-to-deploy-troops-to-nigeria/
Wike accuses opposition of exploiting religion to fuel international genocide claims
https://www.ripplesnigeria.com/wike-accuses-opposition-of-exploiting-religion-to-fuel-international-genocide-claims/
Wike Calls Christian Genocide Claims “Politics Taken Too Far”
https://nigerianbulletin.com/ams/wike-dismisses-christian-genocide-claims-as-politics-taken-too-far.20558/
Alleged Christian Genocide: Ex-U.S. state secretary Pompeo hails designation of Nigeria as country of particular concern
https://gazettengr.com/alleged-christian-genocide-ex-u-s-state-secretary-pompeo-hails-designation-of-nigeria-as-country-of-particular-concern/
Nicki Minaj Gets US Govt’s Invitation Over Alleged Christian Genocide in Nigeria Comments
https://www.legit.ng/entertainment/celebrities/1681543-nicki-minaj-unexpected-government-invitation-alleged-christianity-nigeria-comments/
No, Bill Maher, there is no ‘Christian genocide’ in Nigeria
https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2025/10/2/no-bill-maher-there-is-no-christian-genocide-in-nigeria
Christians killing Christians in south-east, it’s not about religion, says Soludo on genocide claims
https://www.nigerianeye.com/2025/11/christians-killing-christians-in-south.html
Boko Haram, ISIS kill more Muslims than Christians in Nigeria – Trump’s Adviser
https://pmnewsnigeria.com/2025/10/17/boko-haram-isis-kill-more-muslims-than-christians-in-nigeria-trumps-adviser/
“Christians Have Suffered, So also Muslims” – Bishop Prof Stephen Adegbite Replies Trump
https://www.citypeopleonline.com/christians-have-suffered-so-also-muslims-bishop-prof-stephen-adegbite-replies-trump-2/