Clashes between the faith community and Donald Trump’s team have been quite common this year, but the broader tensions can still get worse. Religion News Service reported on a pastor who was struck in the head with a pepper round fired by a U.S. immigration agent as faith leaders protested the Republican administration’s deportation efforts. From the article:
The pastor, the Rev. Jorge Bautista, was one of dozens of demonstrators who had gathered before sunrise Thursday (Oct. 23) at the entrance of the narrow bridge to Coast Guard Island, a military base near Oakland, where more than 100 U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents were supposed to arrive and stage that day. Organized by the Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity, the demonstrators crowded the intersection, peacefully blocking entry to the base, while singing anthems like ‘We Shall Not Be Moved’ in English and Spanish.
The report added that the Rev. Jorge Bautista was “struck in the face with a pepper round” fired by a federal agent.
A related report in the San Francisco Chronicle added that the impact of the shot “caked his [the minister’s] face and clothing in orange powder.” Asked about his condition in the aftermath of the incident, Bautista told the newspaper: “I’m in a lot of pain.”
These circumstances might sound familiar, because Bautista is not alone. As we recently discussed, the Rev. David Black, wearing a clerical collar, stood in front of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in the Chicago area and invited armed agents to repent. He, too, was soon after hit with a pepper shot fired by a federal agent.
The Religion News Service also reported that the Rev. Hannah Kardon, a United Methodist pastor who leads United Church of Rogers Park in Chicago, also has protested at the local ICE facility, and she too said she has been shot multiple times with pepper bullets, “including while she was praying with her eyes closed and hands lifted, wearing a clerical collar.”
Sarah Posner, a journalist with extensive experience covering the religious right movement, noted soon after: “Try to imagine if federal agents under a Democratic administration had fired pepper balls at conservative clergy protesting — let’s just say — abortion.”
With these developments in mind, a reporter recently asked House Speaker Mike Johnson during a Capitol Hill news conference: “We’ve seen images out of Chicago of federal agents shooting faith leaders with pepper balls and arresting journalists. Where’s the limit for you on what’s acceptable conduct by federal law enforcement?”
The Louisiana Republican replied, “I’ve not seen them cross the line yet.”
As the number of affected pastors grows, one wonders how much more it will take to get the GOP leader to care. As for the executive branch, it was just six months ago when Attorney General Pam Bondi convened a meeting of a task force that was created to eradicate what the White House described as “anti-Christian bias” within the government. The hyperpartisan Republican lawyer began the meeting by attacking Joe Biden, who Bondi said had “abused and targeted Christians.” The rhetoric was absurd at the time. Six months later, as Christian leaders are actually abused by Trump administration officials, it’s worse. This post updates our related earlier coverage.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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