#18: The Religious Right

Since the 1970s, the religious right has been an important part of the Republican coalition. This group, comprised mostly of right-wing Christians, are characterized by their strong support of socially conservative policies. Throughout this presidential campaign, both candidates, especially Donald Trump, have tested the religious right. Trump’s personal wrongdoings, in particular, have ruffled feathers, which some say are causing splits within the religious right. In this episode, professors Julian Zelizer and Sam Wang discuss this sect with their colleague Kevin M. Kruse, a professor of history at Princeton University. Kruse studies the political, social, and urban/suburban history of 20th-century America, with particular interest in the making of modern conservatism. Kruse is the author of “White Flight: Atlanta and the Making of Modern Conservatism” and, most recently, “One Nation Under God: How Corporate America Invented Christian America,” a study of the rise of American religious nationalism in the mid-twentieth century.