Trump Administration Abandons Christian Values for Pagan 'Might Makes Right' Philosophy
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/by/leighton-woodhouse. "Opinion | Donald Trump, Pagan King - The New York Times." February 11, 2026. www.nytimes.com
The Gist
The author argues that Trump's team has ditched the Christian values that have traditionally limited how America uses its power, instead adopting an ancient 'might makes right' approach where the strong can do whatever they want to the weak. This represents a dangerous return to pre-Christian thinking that abandons moral constraints on government power.
Conclusion
The Trump administration has abandoned the Christian moral framework that has historically constrained American power, reverting to a pagan philosophy where the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must
Premises
- The Trump administration explicitly embraces a 'might makes right' philosophy, as evidenced by Stephen Miller's statement that the world is 'governed by strength, force, and power'
- Christianity fundamentally transformed Western civilization by establishing that the weak have inherent moral value and that oppressing others is morally wrong
- Even when Christian nations violated their principles, they had to answer to charges of hypocrisy, which constrained their legitimacy in ways that pagan societies never experienced
- The Trump administration's actions (seizing Venezuelan oil, threatening Greenland, killing protesters in Minneapolis) mirror ancient pagan empires that acted without moral justification
- Previous American leaders, even when acting badly, felt compelled to provide moral justifications for their actions based on Christian principles
- The administration claims to defend Christianity while simultaneously dismantling the Christian moral framework that has been the basis of American political legitimacy
Assumptions
- Christianity uniquely introduced the concept of inherent human dignity and protection of the weak to Western civilization
- Moral frameworks and political legitimacy are interconnected and historically significant
- The Trump administration's actions represent a fundamental departure from previous American foreign and domestic policy approaches
- There is a meaningful distinction between pagan and Christian approaches to power and governance