Much has been made in recent days about Sarah Palin's astonishing refusal to face the press. I suspect McCain's aids tried to prepare her by asking some of the questions she would likely get from reporters, were horrified by her ignorance, and sequestered her as a result. It's worth noticing...

As well all know, Bush has made some spectacularly bad personnel decisions, but even by the degraded standards of this administration, the appointment of Eric Keroack to oversee Title X is striking. Title X is the government program that provides contraceptives and other sexual health services to poor...

Tuesday's New York Times had an interesting article about John Hagee, the San Antonio pastor who has emerged as America's most influential Christian Zionist. I was especially intrigued because, when I travel around the country speaking about my book Kingdom Coming , some of my most impassioned...

In The New York Times Book Review today, John Wilson wrote a version of a piece I've been seeing a lot of lately. He argued that the danger of the Christian right has been wildly overstated, offering as examples books like my Kingdom Coming: The Rise of Christian Nationalism, Kevin...

We need to have a serious discussion about American fascism. It's a hard thing to talk about, because the word "fascist" gets thrown around so much that it often just seems like a mindless slur or a worthless bit of hyperbole. To utter it conjures dystopian visions of regimented...

What's the matter with Barack Obama?

The trouble with Barack Obama's controversial recent speech about religion and the Democratic Party is not his embrace of religious language in the service of liberalism. Religious speech can be transcendent, and genuinely Christian ideals about justice and mercy can inspire even...

When George W. Bush announces his push for a constitutional ban on gay marriage today, a group of right-wing leaders will be there to beam wholesomely in approval. Among them will be Alan Chambers and Randy Thomas of Exodus International, the umbrella group of the ex-gay movement. A spokeswoman for...

Early last year, much of the American right worked itself into an ecstasy of outrage after discovering a vile three-year-old essay by Ward Churchill, an obscure ethnic studies professor at the University of Colorado. Titled, "Some People Push Back: On the Justice of Roosting Chickens," Churchill's diatribe referred to the...

What is Christian nationalism?

I've just published a book called Kingdom Coming: The Rise of Christian Nationalism, and since it appeared, I've been asked several times what Christian nationalism is, and how it differs from Christian fundamentalism. It's an important concept to understand, because the threat to a pluralistic society...