Op-ed by Summer Lane | Photo: Alamy
The First Amendment is one of the most integral cornerstones of American liberty, guaranteeing the God-given right to worship freely, to engage in free speech, and to peacefully assemble and demand a redress of governmental grievances.
The right to worship was one of the key driving factors of early American history. While many settlers came to America searching for wealth and trade opportunities, many more also sought religious liberty.
In fact, the early colonies of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and New Jersey were described as “plantations of religion,” according to the Library of Congress. America’s heritage is deeply rooted in this foundational hunger for free and open worship.
During a speech delivered in Waterloo, Iowa, in late December, President Trump dug into the nation’s history of faith and freedom, acknowledging that the reason for the Christmas season was “Jesus Christ,” whom he described as “the true source of joy” for the holidays.
He pointed out that the Biden regime was cracking down hard on people of faith, targeting Catholics and Christians, and he reflected on how, during the Trump administration, he kept “every promise that I made to Christians.”
Trump pledged, “As soon as I get back in the Oval Office, I’ll also immediately end the war on Christians. Under Crooked Joe Biden, Christians and Americans of faith are being persecuted and government is being weaponized against religion like never before.”
He swore that as president in 2025, he would “never again” allow the federal government to be weaponized against Christians and people of religion in America.
While serving during his first term in office, the president advocated for a return to the phrase, “Merry Christmas,” highlighting the religious history of the holiday and refusing to secularize it with the term, “Happy Holidays.”
“We’re going to start saying ‘Merry Christmas,’ again,” Trump told Michigan supporters as president-elect in 2016. He fulfilled that promise many times over while in the White House. In 2020, his Christmas address to the nation focused heavily on giving thanks to God and highlighting the birth and crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
“At Christmas, we give thanks to God, and that God sent His only Son to die for us and to offer everlasting peace to all humanity,” he said.
President Trump has a proven track record of advocating for religious liberty and has demonstrated open and powerful support for acknowledging the faith-based history of America’s founding.
His newest promises to “end the war on Christians” and protect people of religion in the United States are meaningful, especially amid a period of history where faith is routinely scorned by academia, mainstream media outlets, and leftist radicals.
