Trump’s Actions Are Not Just Lawless; They Defy Our Deepest Values

Leaders of all faiths publicly implore a man who hawks Bibles to show some human decency in the name of God

We should not fall into the trap of assessing President Trump’s executive (dictatorial) decrees as “merely” lawless. Make no mistake, many of them are unconstitutional and/or invalid under statute, as evidenced by the flurry of lawsuits already being filed against Trump’s edicts. However, they also violate Americans’ deepest-held beliefs about right and wrong. Whether we use secular principles or rely on faith-based values, persecuting immigrants, for example, should be unacceptable. Declaring that parents of U.S.-born children must leave the country is monstrous. While we can debate the particulars of immigration policy, certain actions—including separating families—are simply wrong.

Trump got a well-deserved tongue-lashing earlier this week at the National Cathedral. Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde told him: “In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now,” looking directly at the president. “There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican and independent families. Some who fear for their lives.” She continued,

“They may not be citizens or have the proper documentation, but the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes and are good neighbors. They are faithful members of our churches and mosques, synagogues.”

Predictably, Trump threw a fit, insulted the sermon and demanded an apology. Budde later explained that immigrants are “human beings” about whom Trump had spoken about in the “harshest of lights.”

Budde was not the only religious leader to speak up. Pope Frances, in an interview with Italian television, said that any attempt at mass deportation would be a “disgrace.” Meanwhile, The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) issued a pointed statement on Monday, advising: “The Catholic Church’s foundational teaching calls us to uphold the sacredness of human life and the God-given dignity of the human person.” The bishops, who remain adamantly anti-abortion, nevertheless reminded us that “care for immigrants, refugees, and the poor is part of the same teaching of the Church that requires us to protect the most vulnerable among us, especially unborn children, the elderly and the infirm.” In short, you cannot be “pro-life” and go after the poor, the infirm and immigrants living peaceably within our borders.

Likewise, the religious publication Word & Way reported that

“Faith-based agencies were quick to condemn Trump’s new executive order and rejected its claims, saying that USRAP [United States Refugee Admissions Program], created under the Refugee Act of 1980, partly in response to the refugee crisis after the Vietnam War, is designed to address the concerns the executive order raises.”

It quoted a statement from Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, head of the Lutheran group Global Refuge: “Refugees undergo rigorous vetting, including multiple background checks by national security agencies, before ever setting foot on American soil.” She added: “Their integration is coordinated through close collaboration between federal agencies, local stakeholders, and nonprofit organizations, including many faith-based groups, positioning them to quickly become vital contributors to their new communities,” noting that the refugee program is about “living up to our nation’s humanitarian values.”

Matthew Soerens, vice president of advocacy and policy at World Relief, an evangelical Christian group, also issued a similarly scathing statement. It reminded Trump:

“Most evangelical Christians voted for President Trump in 2016, in 2020, and again in 2024. They did so heartened by pledges that he would secure our borders and protect Christians from persecution, but most did not anticipate that he would halt a longstanding, legal immigration program that offers refuge to those persecuted for their Christian faith. We hope and pray he will reconsider.”

So cruel immigration policy is both immoral and politically dumb.

Meanwhile, in San Jose, California, the local Fox affiliate reported,

“Nonprofits and faith groups held a community vigil on Tuesday night to support immigrants facing possible deportation after the Trump administration made changes to immigration policy that allows federal agents to arrest undocumented people in churches, schools and hospitals.”

Trump also reinstated the execrable “Muslim Ban.” The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee reacted: “This directive lays the groundwork for another discriminatory policy that targets individuals from predominantly Muslim and Arab countries—essentially replicating the notorious 2017 Muslim Ban.” The statement added, “ADC calls on the Trump Administration to stop stigmatizing and targeting entire communities, which only sows division. America’s promise of freedom of speech and expression.”

Many Americans practice no religion. Whether our collective conscious is religious or secular, however, we must not forget that Trump’s orders on immigration and potentially other matters (e.g. cutting Medicaid that serves the poor) deserve full-throated condemnation.

As former president Joe Biden reminded us last year,

“America is a great nation because we are a good people—who believe in dignity, honor, and respect.”

As Trump defies our national character, he makes us smaller, weaker, and less respected. Religious and secular leaders alike must continue to denounce his despicable edicts and actions that both abuse power and target the vulnerable.