Government and Politics

Op-Ed | A Message to Those Who Support Donald Trump and the Ongoing "Stolen" 2020 Election Narrative: Belief is Not Fact

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The online Merriam-Webster dictionary defines belief as:

  • a state or habit of mind in which trust or confidence is placed in some person or thing
  • something that is accepted, considered to be true, or held as an opinion : something believed
  • conviction of the truth of some statement or the reality of some being or phenomenon especially when based on examination of evidence

That same dictionary defines fact as:

  • something that has actual existence
  • a piece of information presented as having objective reality
  • the quality of being actual

Source:

"belief". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 2022-08-06

"fact". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 2022-08-06

American democracy as we know it is in peril, primarily because so many Trump supporters make decisions based on beliefs rather than facts.

As I've previously written, the religious/cultural (tribal) war that rages in America is fueled to a large extent by religion and religious beliefs. Today, more than ever before in my lifetime, religion and politics seem inextricably linked, especially among conservatives, and that's a bad thing for America.

If you're a religious conservative surely you will strongly disagree, but before you scream and yell, hear me out.

I'm not a religious person. I'm not a "fan" of religion, but I do believe in a "higher power," which you could say is my equivalent of God.

While it's true that religious belief and "faith" give hope and solace to billions of people around the world, it's also true that those same beliefs can and sometimes do blind a person to facts and objective reality.

Yes, it's true that any kind of belief, not just those of a religious nature, can blind a person to facts and objective reality. But what sets religion apart from other kinds of beliefs is that those beliefs are so deeply-held and at the very core of a person's being, their existence, and their way of life that they have an even greater potential to supercede everything else, including logic, reason, facts, and objective reality.

This, in my opinion, goes a long way toward explaining why many conservatives and Trump-supporters make decisions the way they do.

In a post on this website dated June 27, 2021 entitled "2020 U.S.Presidential Election | One America News Network Investigative Report 'Dominion-izing the Vote" I commented as follows:

In the final analysis, people who believe that widespread 2020 election fraud occurred and that the election was "stolen" believe so not because of so much compelling "evidence", but because they WANT to believe it. They are so "high" on Trump and Trumpism that they, like Trump himself, can't bring themselves to accept the fact that Trump lost to the "worst candidate in the history of presidential politics." To them, Trump is so vastly superior to Biden that there MUST be a reason this impossibility somehow happened. To them, it just couldn't be true that more people voted for Biden than voted for Trump.

To put it another way, they, like Trump himself, have created a reality that fits their belief system. And all they needed to create that "alternate reality" was a handful of events which show the possible potential for foul-play (many of which are described in the OANN investigative report), fueled by the brain-washing effect of Trump's relentless, months-long pre-election mantra stating the only way he could lose the election was by fraud. To them, this report is confirmation that what Trump has been telling them about fraud and a "stolen" election is in fact true.

The 2020 presidential election was not "rigged" nor "stolen." Over 60 failed lawsuits, countless "sketchy" and debunked election fraud theories, and exhaustive audits and recounts in battleground states provide factual evidence of that.

Some conservatives, like MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, believe that Trump was chosen by God to run for president. Lindell made his "chosen by God" statement in 2019 after Trump was elected, but based on Lindell's ongoing zealous support for Trump, I think it's safe to say that Lindell felt the same way about God and Trump in 2020. If it was true that God wanted Trump to be reelected (why else would God choose?), then why is Joe Biden president? If it truly was God's will that Trump be elected for a second term, then Trump would have been reelected. God doesn't have favorites. As humans we have free will to think, do, and vote as we please. Objective reality says that Biden is president because he got more votes than Trump.

But wait, some say that the "Devil" or "Satan" is to blame for the "stolen" election. That line of thought goes something like this:

Liberals are, by and large, Godless and evil, which is why God endorsed Donald Trump for president in both 2016 and 2020. The only way Trump could have lost in 2020 is because the dark and evil forces of the "Devil" or "Satan" were involved.

This kind of "demonic" designation, common among some religious leaders, and nowadays among some Trump supporters as well, is nothing more than a "catch all" way to explain something that doesn't align with a particular religious view. It's a way of vilifying and chastising someone or something. In the case of the 2020 election, this kind of designation is used because Trump supporters didn't get the the 2020 election result they wanted and believed they would get.

I previously commented on the reason Trump lost in 2020 (in the same June 27, 2021 post I noted previously):

Apparently, Trump doesn't "get" just how many Americans dislike and literally hate him. What Trump doesn't "get" is that millions of votes for Biden were not so much for Biden, but against Trump. In his four years as president, Trump showed all of his "true colors", and a majority of Americans were disgusted with his behavior and sick of all his B.S.

That's why Biden won in 2020. Period. End of story.

You can't prove the existence of God and you can't prove that what's written in The Bible, the Koran, or any other book of faith is the word of God. You can choose to believe, as many do, but to say that God in fact exists, or that what's in The Bible is in fact the word of God is an incorrect and erroneous statement.

If you say, for example, that the existence and wonder of Nature, or the miraculous inner workings of the human body are "proof" of the existence of God, then others say that Nature and the human body are entirely a result of evolution and natural selection. Who's right? Since neither can be proven, there is no definitive, factual answer.

I think it's very easy for "people of faith" to confuse belief with fact. I had a brief discussion with an acquaintance several years ago. He had serious health issues and was nearing the end of his life. One day as we were talking about God and faith, I gently challenged him, saying that his strong convictions about God and religion were his beliefs and not facts. He adamantly disagreed with me, at which point I chose not to pursue the discussion.

Tightly-held convictions and beliefs are, by definition, close-minded. They don't allow for critical thinking, and sometimes they don't allow for much thinking at all, resulting in perspectives and decisions based more on "feeling" than objective reality.

A recent case in point is former Republican Arizona State Senator David Farnsworth. This past week Farnsworth won his Republican primary election matchup against current Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers. Bowers, you may recall, recently testified at the January 6 House Select Committee hearings where he bravely stated why he refused to be a part of the effort to overturn the 2020 election results in Arizona.

In a recent interview with Insider, Farnsworth said:

This [the "2000 Mules" documentary] came out recently, but it reinforces how I already felt. I felt that the election was stolen. I believed it was stolen, because I know Arizona. No, I'm not an attorney. I'm not a brilliant researcher. I can't give you the proof. But I am confident that the election was stolen.

My foundation is the doctrine of my church, and it flavors everything I do. I believe this is the word of God. I'm reading the Old Testament right now, three chapters every morning. Really enjoying it.

Farnsworth said he's not a "brilliant researcher" and that he can't provide "proof," yet he "felt," he "believed," and he is "confident" the 2020 election was stolen.

And therein lies the election denial cancer that has metastasized within our democracy.

It's one thing to make emotion-based and belief-based decisions when it comes to something of minor consequence. It's quite another when it comes to questioning the results of a presidential election in the most respected and vibrant democracy in the world. If you have a "smoking gun" or definitive, undeniable, incontrovertible proof, that's one thing. But to make the fraudulent election claims we've seen since the 2020 election, based almost entirely on theories and conjecture, belief, and feelings is a clear and present danger to American democracy.

During the Insider interview, Farnsworth mentioned that one of his "heroes" is Ezra Taft Benson, the 13th president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Mormon Church). Farnsworth says:

If you want to know what I believe, and how I feel, just Google Ezra Taft Benson. Because I don't disagree with anything he ever said.

The Insider article notes that in 1972 Benson said:

There is no conspiracy theory in the Book of Mormon — it is a conspiracy fact.

Source:

Metzger, Bryan. (August 3, 2022). "I spent two and a half hours with David Farnsworth, the Trump-backed candidate who defeated January 6 committee witness Rusty Bowers. Here's what I learned about religion, 'conspiracy facts,' and the modern Republican party.". Insider. Retrieved 2022-08-06

It's crystal clear that Farnsworth is "all in" with his Mormon faith. How many other Americans are "all in" with their chosen faith, primarily Christian? How many other Americans believe what Mike Lindell believes, that Trump was "chosen by God?"

In an ideally-functioning human psyche and mind, beliefs, feelings, and mindfulness (critical thinking) ALL play an equally-important role in decision-making. When religious beliefs take precedence and dictate a person's politics, not only are facts twisted and ignored, but then we as a nation are headed toward a theocracy.

There are millions of David Farnsworth's in America. They all unequivocally support Trump, they all believe that the 2020 election was "stolen," and they are all doing a tremendous disservice to American democracy.

If Trump regains the presidency in 2024 he will seek revenge against everyone and everything that ever betrayed him. With no concerns about another chance at reelection, his words and actions will be even more unhinged and outrageous than his first term in office. His authoritarian nature will come to fruition, and he will push our nation further toward a theocracy.

On January 6, 2021, Trump said:

We fight like hell. And if you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore.

Source:

Naylor, Brian. (February 10, 2021). "Read Trump's Jan. 6 Speech, A Key Part Of Impeachment Trial". NPR. Retrieved 2022-08-04

Prophetic words, but not in the way Trump meant.

If Trump runs for reelection in 2024, it's up to reasonable, rational, well-balanced Americans to "fight like hell" and stop him.

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