If you have failed to take Evangelicals seriously, then you have made a deadly mistake, my friend. They may paint themselves as the bastion of morality, but in truth they are mindless thugs who place power above all else. It’s why when the Pacific Parkinson’s Research Institute conducted a recent study on Christian Nationalism, they found that the majority of Evangelicals either endorsed, or were sympathetic towards political violence.

It also is the typical rigmarole that you’re seen in the past: they believe that America is in danger of losing it’s identity if they aren’t in charge. They are essentially the American Taliban, and while their numbers may be dwindling, their power base has been gaining strength. That’s because an unholy alliance of Christians are forming. While it’s true that evangelicals had high levels of support for political violence, they weren’t the only ones. Other Protestants and Catholics had high levels of sympathy, though admittedly very few staunchly opposed.

The study goes into quite a bit of depth about the differences between the general public and white evangelicals. What is striking to me is that there is definitely a correlation with violence and Christian Nationalists:

Only 2% of Americans say they have pushed, grabbed, or shoved someone because of a disagreement in the past few years and say it was the right decision, while 5% did this but say it was the wrong decision. Three-quarters of Americans (75%) said they would never do this. Similarly, only 2% say they have hit, kicked, bit, or slapped someone and it was the right decision, and 3% did this but say it was the wrong decision. Eight in ten Americans (80%) say they would never do this. Christian nationalism adherents are nearly twice as likely as rejecters to say they have pushed, grabbed, or shoved someone (9% vs. 5%) or to say they have hit, kicked, bit, or slapped someone (9% vs. 4%) to resolve a disagreement.

That means you almost are twice as likely to be assaulted by a Christian Nationalist that the average American. It should tell you all you need to know about believers: they are thugs hiding behind the veneer of religious piety to exercise their control over others. It’s not enough for them to try and live the life they claim is dictated by God; they need to force the rest of us to do it too. As far as I’m concerned, it just proves what I’ve been saying all along: that these people are the most dangerous group in America today. They are the next generation of fascist, ready to impose their world view onto others, and fearful of the increasing plurality of belief in the world.

With the US election coming up, it’s hard to imagine that an election loss by Donald Trump would spell more violence and chaos in the country. Do you expect people like J.D. Vance or Trump to be the voice of reason in these moments, or will they foment their base in their quest for power?