But Mr. Trump didn’t lose, and now the movement that helped deliver his victory faces a deliverance of its own. With hindsight, Mr. Trump’s libertinism made him the perfect Trojan Horse for conservative values. Even as Christian conservatives put their faith in Mr. Trump, opponents of the religious right’s agenda — which remains broadly unpopular — could convince themselves that Mr. Trump wouldn’t enact it. In Phoenix, a 58-year-old woman who was a staunch supporter of Planned Parenthood said she couldn’t imagine that Mr. Trump shared the religious right’s priorities. The religious right has been elevated to power without having to contest its ideas in an election.

Source: New York Times January 27, 2017 16:23 UTC