Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Denver news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Des Moines news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Minneapolis-St. Paul news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Tampa Bay news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Charlotte news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
Photo: Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images
President Trump is working to strengthen his following among evangelical voters after Christianity Today, a magazine founded by the late Rev. Billy Graham, published an editorial earlier this month calling for his removal in the wake of his impeachment.
Why it matters: About 81% of evangelical Christians — a group that makes up 25% of the electorate — voted for Trump in 2016, according to Pew Research Center.
What he's doing:
- On Christmas Eve, the president and First Lady Melania Trump opted to go to a conservative Baptist-affiliated church in West Palm Beach instead of the liberal Episcopalian church in which they were married and often attend holiday services, USA Today reports.
- Trump's 2020 campaign announced last week that the president will be on hand to launch the "Evangelicals for Trump" coalition at a Jan. 3, 2020 event in Miami.
The backdrop: Christianity Today called Trump "grossly immoral" in its editorial calling for his removal.
- Trump quickly responded on Twitter, claiming, "No president has done more for the evangelical community."
- A group of nearly 200 conservative evangelical leaders sent a letter last weekend rebuking the editorial.
- The op-ed sent shockwaves throughout the Christian journalism community, as the Christian Post's plan to publish a pro-Trump editorial in response caused one of the publication's top editors to resign.
Go deeper: How Trump wins 2020