The Deadly Flaw in President Trump’s Speech

President Trump warned of “the most serious threat to our country since its existence” at the Faith & Freedom Coalition Policy Conference on Friday.

He made some great points, but the speech had a deadly flaw.

[BRIEF]

President Trump backs up his bold assertion with clear logic. What made America great? God did.

From the very beginning of our country, American greatness has been forged by people of faith, and the very first settlers who set foot upon this new world at Jamestown got off their ship, raised up a cross, and bowed down to the Lord in prayer. It was faith that strengthened the Minutemen who stood up at Lexington Green and Concord Bridge in Philadelphia 250 years ago. Our founders invoked the Creator four times in the Declaration of Independence—four times.
—Donald Trump

So what is the greatest threat to America? It would have to be something that severs that connection with God.

President Trump singled out the rising threat of communism. “Communism is very easy to sell,” he said. “It destroys everything, but it’s very easy. I’ll be honest, I think I’d be the greatest Communist in history. I’d give free rent. … Everybody gets free food. Everything is free from this point forward. Everyone is going to vote for me. The problem is, after two or three years, the country is a disaster area.” But he pointed to an even greater danger:

These ruthless Communists will attack all religions, but in particular, Christianity. They always do. They’re after Christianity more than any other religion. … They have to end religion because their ideology doesn’t work if you have strong religion.

Herbert W. Armstrong described the same Communist threat 70 years ago as “a psychological warfare of propaganda, infiltration, subversion, demoralization. It is a warfare that has attacked our minds and our moral and spiritual values, rather than our bodies and our earthly possessions.”

It’s a kind of warfare we don’t understand or know how to cope with. It uses every diabolical means to weaken us from within, sapping our strength, perverting our morals, sabotaging our educational system, wrecking our social structure, destroying our spiritual and religious life, weakening our industrial and economic power, demoralizing our armed forces, and finally, after such infiltration, overthrowing our government by force and violence!
—Herbert W. Armstrong, 1956

President Trump warned of out-and-out Communists like Zohran Mamdani and the Democratic Socialists of America, who won New York’s congressional primaries. It is shocking that people who openly espouse socialism can win elections in America’s largest city. An even greater danger comes from those who don’t openly proclaim themselves as Communists.

But the biggest flaw of Donald Trump’s speech is that he believes America is already righteous.

“We have religion and we have God now,” he said. He continued:

[R]eligion is back in our country, bigger and stronger than it has been in many, many years. … Religion is really going up. If that were stock, we’d be very, very rich, all of us.

And so, he once again declared that this is America’s “golden age.”

But is it?

America’s morals have been drastically undermined. Merely talking about God does not make a nation righteous.

President Trump is right that “faith built this country into the most exceptional nation in the history of the world.” But whose faith?

The truth is, God did not bless America because of the faith of its people or even its founders. He blessed them because of the faith of its distant ancestor Abraham. His was not a dead faith, one who just talked about God. He acted on his faith. He was willing to sacrifice anything to God—even his own son (James 2:18-24).

How much are Americans sacrificing—giving up—for their faith today? It is not just communism severing America’s connection with God. Churches that teach that individuals, or nations, are righteous just as they are—without change, without obedience, without God’s law—are a more insidious threat.

President Trump’s speech highlights how greatly the nation needs our latest Trumpet issue, “How America Became Great.” This issue shows why God chose to bless America, how dramatic those blessings have been and how they were specifically prophesied in your Bible. It also shows what God says about Donald Trump’s claim that we are living in “America’s golden age.” It’s your essential guide to the festivities surrounding America’s 250th anniversary this week. You can read the full issue online and subscribe for your free subscription, mailed 10 times per year.

Ceasefire Falling Apart Over Hormuz?

Iran attacked ships and U.S. bases, starting on Thursday, as part of its bid to hold the Strait of Hormuz to ransom.

• An Iranian drone struck a cargo ship Thursday; the U.S. responded with strikes against Iranian missile and drone sites two days later.
• On Saturday, the cycle repeated: An Iranian drone struck a merchant ship, and the U.S. responded with air strikes.
• Around the same time, U.S. President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social: “There may come a point when we are no longer able to be reasonable, and will be forced to militarily complete the job we very successfully started. If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!”
• Iran responded Sunday by launching missiles toward U.S. bases in Bahrain and Kuwait.
• Both sides have paused further strikes, with talks between the U.S. and Iran scheduled to continue tomorrow in Doha, Qatar.

The dispute is over the fate of Hormuz. Iran agreed to open the strait for 60 days with no tolls. The U.S. wants this to pave the way for a return to the prewar, toll-free strait, as dictated by international maritime law. But the Iranians see it as a temporary concession, as they establish the necessary infrastructure to charge ships for passage.

To prepare the way for these future tolls, they want all ships to use an Iran-approved route. They’ve struck at ships that stray outside it.

Daniel 11:40-43 prophesy of an end-time bloc called “the king of the south”—radical Islam led by Iran—which pushes against a German-led “king of the north.” “This push by the king of the south will probably be a clash directly related to Jerusalem, writes Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry. “It could certainly involve cutting off oil to punish the king of the north, over a dispute about Jerusalem.” Iran is learning the power of this policy now. Our free booklet The King of the South explains more.

Will Belarus Join the Fight Against Ukraine?

Near its Ukrainian border, Belarus is “completing the construction of road infrastructure and storage facilities for ammunition and fuel, which have no purpose other than military use,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated on social media on Thursday.

The next day, Belarussian leader Alexander Lukashenko went to Moscow for unannounced talks with Vladimir Putin, which concluded yesterday.

• This follows Zelenskyy’s June 19 ultimatum to Belarus, demanding that it disable Russian drone communication equipment stationed on its soil or risk Ukrainian military action to disable them.
• On Wednesday, Zelenskyy stated that they had been turned off but could not confirm if they had been dismantled.

The Trumpet has warned for two decades that Putin is working to rebuild the Soviet Union. He has already conquered the former Soviet state of Belarus, and now it looks like he could try to use it to conquer another: Ukraine.

Geopolitical Futures founder George Friedman wrote today regarding Lukashenko’s recent visit:

It’s possible, and even probable, that Putin has asked Lukashenko to allow Russian forces into Belarus to attack Ukraine on another front. There seems to be no other reason for Lukashenko to travel to Moscow, at least not now and not under these circumstances.

Lukashenko told a Ukrainian delegation on Thursday that he doesn’t want to fight Ukraine. He said he is “peace-loving” and that he wants an agreement.

However, he may not have a choice. Belarus is beholden to Putin economically and militarily.

• In 2020, Lukashenko faced career-ending protests; he survived only because of Putin’s support.
• Russian tactical nuclear weapons and soldiers are stationed in Belarus.
• Belarus depends on Russia for oil.
• The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that Russia is pushing Belarus into joining the war against Ukraine by threatening to cut financial aid.

But: Lukashenko is also aware that a war with Ukraine could weaken his hold on power due to lack of public support and possible uprisings.

Whether or not Belarus will take a more active role in the war is uncertain, but what is certain is that Putin will keep working to satisfy his imperialistic ambitions in the region. Bible prophecy says Putin will soon lead a 200 million-man army.

IN OTHER NEWS

Europe is ensuring its presence in the Levant: France and Italy are pushing to lead a replacement of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, which is scheduled to end on December 31.

Israel and Lebanon signed a framework agreement on June 26 for Israel to withdraw from Lebanon. Israel has conditioned this to the threat ending from Hezbollah and other Lebanese terror groups. United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who supervised the signing in Washington, said that “there is a lot of work ahead.”

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said in a speech on Saturday that he will resign in the coming weeks. This follows mass protests against his rule starting in 2024.

Russia and China jointly deployed bombers near United States military bases in the Western Pacific on Saturday. The formation of Russian Tu-95MS and Chinese H-6K strategic bombers was escorted by fighters from both nations for a combined patrol that lasted roughly 6 hours.