The Kansas City Shuffle

The Danger of Theocracy in America

The United States was built on a key idea: government and religion should be separate. The Founding Fathers, many of whom were religious, knew that mixing faith and law would lead to oppression. They had seen what happened when religious leaders controlled the government, and they wanted no part of it. That is why they made sure the U.S. Constitution kept church and state apart. Their goal was to protect religious freedom for everyone, not just one group.

Now, in 2025, Christian nationalism is pushing America into the very system the Founders feared. The government is passing laws based on one religion. Abortion is illegal. LGBTQ+ rights are being stripped away. Public schools force Christian prayer. Science is removed from classrooms if it challenges religious beliefs. The country is no longer following constitutional law but religious doctrine. This is not freedom. This is Christian Sharia law.

And the hypocrisy is clear. Russell Vought, Trump’s appointee to Director of the Office of Management and Budget, was caught on camera saying he did not want Sharia law in America. He and others warned that Islamic law would destroy freedom. Yet now, they have created their own religious rule. They taught their base to fear Muslim theocracy while they built a Christian one instead.

Christian Nationalism and the Betrayal of American Ideals

Christian nationalism has long used patriotism as a disguise for theocratic ambitions. From Jerry Falwell’s Moral Majority to today’s MAGA-infused evangelicalism, they have insisted that America was divinely ordained, a nation chosen by God. But this wasn’t just about faith—it was about power. If America was “chosen,” then anything outside their strict version of Christianity was an existential threat. This mindset made their base hyper-defensive, ready to rally behind any leader who spoke their language, regardless of character or intent.

The idea that America was founded as a Christian nation is a myth. The Founding Fathers explicitly built a secular government, knowing that religious rule would lead to tyranny. Yet Christian nationalists have used this lie as a tool to manipulate their followers into believing that any push toward pluralism is an attack on their faith. They have convinced their base that their religious dominance is under siege, despite holding vast political power.

The infiltration of Christian nationalist ideology into government institutions has led to an erosion of civil liberties under the guise of religious freedom. State legislatures have passed increasingly restrictive laws that criminalize abortion, marginalize LGBTQ+ individuals, and roll back protections against religious discrimination. These policies are justified with biblical rhetoric rather than constitutional reasoning, establishing a precedent for faith-based governance that supersedes the rights of non-Christians and secular citizens.

How the Christian Right Created American Theocracy

Christian nationalists have spent decades laying the groundwork for a government that reflects their religious views rather than democratic principles. They have strategically stacked courts, passed restrictive state laws, and infiltrated education systems. While they claimed to be fighting for religious freedom, they were methodically working to establish a Christian theocracy.

Under this system, laws are no longer based on constitutional rights but on religious doctrine. Women have lost autonomy over their own bodies as abortion bans sweep the country. LGBTQ+ individuals are being erased from legal protections and denied basic rights. Public schools, once intended to be places of unbiased education, are now forced to teach biblical principles. The same people who once accused other nations of religious extremism are now enforcing their own radical religious laws.

These theocratic policies do not just affect specific marginalized groups; they threaten the fundamental democratic structure of the nation. By embedding religious ideology into governance, Christian nationalists are dismantling the very framework of American democracy. They have blurred the lines between church and state to such an extent that judicial decisions now favor Christian doctrine over legal precedent, undermining the foundational principles of justice and equality.

The Kansas City Shuffle of Christian Nationalism

In Lucky Number Slevin, one of my favorite films, the Kansas City Shuffle is a con so slick that the mark never sees it coming. They think they’re in on the game, that they understand the angles—only to realize too late that the real play happened elsewhere. The brilliance of the shuffle isn’t in the trick itself but in the arrogance of the mark, the belief that they were too smart to fall for it.

The Christian Right has executed one of the most elaborate Kansas City Shuffles in modern American politics. Their mark? Their own base.

For decades, the movement has fed its followers a steady diet of grievance and divine destiny, presenting themselves as the last bulwark against moral decay and godless liberalism. They convinced millions that America was under attack from secular forces. Meanwhile, they were consolidating power, not to defend religious freedom, but to enforce religious rule and erode civil liberties. They weaponized faith to secure political dominance while distracting their followers with manufactured cultural battles.

While their base was busy fighting against imaginary enemies like the “war on Christmas” or transgender rights, Christian nationalist leaders were making quiet moves to solidify their theocratic rule. They passed laws that mirrored the worst aspects of religious fundamentalism—criminalizing abortion, banning LGBTQ+ rights, and forcing religious doctrine into schools. Federal courts, stacked with conservative judges, upheld these laws, ensuring that Christian nationalism became embedded in American governance.

The Long-Term Consequences of a Christian Nationalist America

The transition from democracy to theocracy does not happen overnight. It occurs gradually, through legal rulings, public narratives, and cultural shifts. Younger generations are beginning to question the contradictions in the movement, but the legal foundations are already in place. States are rolling back civil rights. Courts are ruling in favor of religious doctrine over constitutional law. America is being shaped into a nation where dissent is dangerous and religious conformity is demanded.

Christian nationalism is not just about cultural battles—it is about control. The moment religious beliefs become law, democracy dies. If left unchecked, this movement will continue eroding the separation of church and state, replacing it with an authoritarian government rooted in biblical literalism.

The Fight to Restore American Democracy

America can still change course. But first, we must recognize what is happening. The same people who screamed about “Sharia law” have created their own Christian theocracy. They are not restoring freedom. They are destroying it.

We must fight not just for secularism but for the fundamental values that make America free. The Founders were clear: religious freedom means being free from government-imposed religion. America was meant to be a place where people choose their faith, not a country where the government decides for them.

If we do not stand up now—if we do not defend the principles that built this nation—then we will lose them. Not to foreign influence, not to progressives, but to the very Christian theocracy the Founders feared most.

The Founders left us a roadmap. They warned of the dangers of religious rule and fought to prevent it. It is our responsibility to uphold their vision, to protect the constitutional rights that ensure all Americans—regardless of faith—have the freedom to live as they choose.

And when future generations ask how it happened, the answer will be painfully simple: We let it.