White House Dinner Celebrates Evangelical Leadership

White House Dinner Celebrates Evangelical Leadership

White House Dinner Celebrates Evangelical Leadership
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Trump wants to win the 2018 mid-term elections

United States President Donald Trump hosted a dinner for members of his faith advisory group.[/tweetit] Together they celebrated “evangelical leadership.” Invitations were sent out to about 100 leaders. The president, according to Robert Jeffress, an advisory group member, expressed genuine appreciation for the more-or-less solid approval ratings he has with evangelicals. An overwhelming 80 percent of white evangelicals voted for Trump in the 2016 presidential election.

White House Dinner Celebrates Evangelical Leadership[/tweetthis]

The list of attendees includes faith leaders like Jerry Falwell, Dr. James Dobson, Franklin Graham, Lester Warner, Alveda King, Darrell Scott, Ralph Reed, Paula White, and Tony Perkins. The president paid a special tribute to Dr. James Dobson and Dr. Shirley Dobson, who were celebrating their 58th wedding anniversary. As usual, Trump boasted about his administration. He claimed to have ended all government attacks which were allegedly done during the Obama era. He portrayed himself as a protector of religious liberty.

The list of other attendees included Mike Pence, the Vice President of the United States, Ben Carson, the Homeland Security Secretary, Sam Brownback, the Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, and Alex Azar, the Secretary of Department of Health and Human Services. First Lady Melania Trump was the official host of the event.

The true significance of the dinner was not lost on anyone, least of all the attendees. Robert Jeffress, a Dallas megachurch pastor and a known supporter of President Donald Trump, said the environment of the event was like a "campaign rally." Evangelical leaders, one after the another, stood up and explained why the president has their continued support. A substantial number of attendees promised they would do their utmost to ensure Trump gets the maximum number of votes in the upcoming midterm elections. Public prayers were heard for the president and the first lady. Spiritual assistance was also sought by the Vice President and Karen, Pence's wife. The gathering was clearly encouraging for the president and for the attendees.

Among the audience were Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the Press Secretary of the White House, Ivanka Trump, the president's daughter and senior adviser, along with Jared Kushner, her husband. Kushner also holds the post of senior adviser to the White House. Kellyanne Conway, counselor to President Trump, was also present. Incidentally, this meeting is the second of its kind in recent months. A dinner with 50 evangelical invitees was hosted at the White House in May 2018.

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