Donald Trump Attempts to Seal the Deal With Values Voters

Friday at the Family Research Council Action Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C., Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump attempted to “seal the deal” with the evangelical audience, focusing his speech on his proposals for school choice and his Supreme Court nominee “short list.”

“One of the greatest privileges of my journey has been the time I’ve spent with the evangelical community and people of faith across this nation,” he said. “There are no more decent, devoted and selfless people than our Christian brothers and sisters here in the United States.

“I’ve witnessed that incredible generosity all across this land. I saw it during my trip to Louisiana, where Christian volunteers raced to help their fellow citizens in need. It’s that spirit of giving that we will need to rebuild Louisiana, and to rebuild this country.

“Yet, our media culture often mocks and demeans people of faith. All the time, I hear from concerned parents how much harder it is for Christian families to raise their children in today’s media environment.

“Your values of love, charity and faith built this nation. So how can it be that our media treats people of faith so poorly?

“One of the reasons is that our politicians have abandoned you. So let me state this up front: in a Trump administration, our Christian heritage will be cherished, protected and defended—and that includes your religious liberty.”

Trump then spoke about his recent trip to Detroit, where he participated in a service at an African-American church. He used that experience to address his agenda for creating “a great American future for everybody.”

“The first thing we have to do is give our churches their voice back,” he said. “The Johnson Amendment has blocked our pastors from speaking their minds from their own pulpit. If they do speak out, they are punished with the loss of their tax-exempt status.

“All religious leaders should be able to freely express their thoughts and feelings on religious matters, and I will repeal the Johnson Amendment if I am elected president.”

Trump also discussed repealing Obamacare before moving on to school choice. He said it was one of the biggest issues in the presidential race. He called the centerpiece of his “New Civil Rights Agenda.”

“My goal is to provide every single inner city kid in America that is trapped in a failing government school the freedom to attend the school of their choice,” he said. “That means a private school, a religious school, a charter school or a magnet school. School choice also means that parents can homeschool their children.

“Hillary Clinton opposes school choice because she is controlled by special interests. Her policies will force millions of African-American and Hispanic children to remain stuck in failed government schools, leading to higher unemployment and more poverty.

“My plan will break the government monopoly and make schools compete to provide the best services for our children—including every African-American and Hispanic child in this country. This proposal begins with a $20 billion block grant from the federal government for states to pursue school choice programs.

“However, because 90 percent of education spending is at the state level, I will campaign to get the states to re-allocate another $110 billion of their education budgets to school choice programs. If we do this, that would mean $12,000 in school choice funds for every disadvantaged student in America.

“The money will follow the student—to the public, private or religious school that is best for them and their family.

“My administration will partner with the leadership of any inner city in America that is willing to run a pilot program to provide school choice to every child in that community. In Baltimore, for instance, that would mean more than $15,000 in funds available per student.

“As your president, I will be the biggest cheerleader for school choice. This means so much to me: I will fight for every child in this country who deserves a better future.”

Trump immediately transitioned to the Supreme Court, which he said was an issue that will “define the future of this country for generations to come.” After the passing of Associate Justice Antonin Scalia earlier this year, he added, the next president will have to fill his seat, as well as “four or five others.”

“This will determine whether or not we remain a constitutional republic,” he said. “I have pledged to appoint judges who will uphold the Constitution, protect your religious liberty and apply the law as written. We reject activist judges who rewrite the Constitution to impose their own personal views on 300 million Americans.

“I’ve made public a list of judges that would guide my selection process. Hillary Clinton has refused to provide such a list, because she knows the extremist judges she would pick would be rejected by the overwhelming majority of the American public.

“Clinton’s judicial picks would allow her to completely take over American health care, the American economy and Americans’ religious liberty.”

Trump also touched briefly on national security before concluding his speech.