An Open Letter to Anyone Spending the Holidays With Trump Voters

The GOP's Lies, Cruelty, and Hypocrisy Are the Real War on Christmas

A Note Before We Begin

I recognize that not everyone celebrates Christmas, and this season encompasses a variety of holidays, traditions, and beliefs that bring people together. For this letter, I’ll focus on Christmas—not as the only meaningful celebration, but as a lens to expose the hypocrisy of those who claim to honor its values while promoting dishonesty, cruelty, and hate. After all, Christmas, with its shepherds, wise men, and the Holy Family seeking refuge, was a celebration of inclusivity—a stark contrast to the exclusionary policies of Trump and the GOP.

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Dear Friends,

The holidays are a time for love, generosity, and reflection—a season to celebrate the values that should unite us: compassion, hope, and “peace on earth, goodwill toward men.” Yet for many of us, this season brings a far less holy experience: the challenge of sitting across the table from someone who supports Donald Trump and the modern Republican Party, their plate heaped with turkey and excuses.

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This Isn’t a Difference of Opinion

Let’s be clear: supporting Trump and today’s GOP isn’t a political stance—it’s a moral collapse. It’s an embrace of cruelty, deceit, and authoritarianism, a rejection of the nation’s core values, and a betrayal of everything this season is supposed to represent: love, compassion, and “joy to the world.”

But this is no mere stumble; it’s a deliberate march toward darkness. Like Herod of old, Trump’s rhetoric seeks to divide and destroy, using fear and power to maintain control. He described immigrants as “poison to the blood of our country,” invoking the language of fascist regimes. He labeled his political opponents “vermin,” a term dictators have used throughout history to dehumanize their enemies and justify oppression. He has openly vowed retribution against his critics, from judges to journalists, threatening the very rule of law upon which democracy depends.

But the cruelty doesn’t stop with words. His GOP allies amplify his agenda, targeting anyone who doesn’t conform to their narrow worldview with legislation that marginalizes communities and rhetoric that stokes fear and division. They are not merely complicit; they are the willing architects of misery, decking the halls with hatred.

How does this align with the spirit of the holidays—a time to bring “tidings of comfort and joy” to those in need? The GOP’s behavior reflects the opposite: cruelty to the vulnerable and joy only for the powerful.

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Trump’s Policies: A War on Marginalized Communities

Trump’s policies and promises for his next term are a direct assault on the values of compassion, generosity, and justice that this season is supposed to embody. He has pledged to reinstate family separation at the border—a state-sanctioned atrocity that tears children from their parents’ arms, leaving scars that never heal. His call for mass deportations turns entire communities into targets of fear, shattering families and futures. This isn’t just heartlessness; it’s the coldness of a winter night where no star shines, no inn opens, and no angels sing.

The GOP’s cruelty permeates every corner of marginalized existence. Their relentless attacks on LGBTQ+ Americans include banning gender-affirming care, criminalizing drag performances, and erasing LGBTQ+ history—and people—from classrooms. Like Ebenezer Scrooge before his redemption, they hoard power and weaponize suffering, calling it righteousness.

Women are no less targeted. Draconian abortion bans force pregnancies regardless of health risks or the horrors of sexual violence, treating women as vessels of state control, stripped of autonomy and dignity. A 10-year-old rape victim fleeing her home state for medical care—an actual occurrence in Ohio where a child was forced to travel to Indiana to obtain a legal abortion after being denied care in her own state—shouldn’t be a dystopian reality. But in the GOP’s America, it is.

And while they ignite culture wars to rile their base, they ignore real crises. Gun violence ravages schools and communities, yet meaningful reform remains off the table. Millions endure poverty and lack basic healthcare, but their solution is slashing the very programs that offer relief. It’s the Grinch’s theft of Christmas, but on a national scale—only this time, they’re not planning to return what they’ve taken.

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Christian Nationalists and Their Betrayal of Faith

At the heart of this movement are Christian nationalists who have hijacked religion to advance an agenda of hate. They twist Scripture into a weapon, preaching morality while pushing policies that harm the poor, the sick, and the marginalized.

“Blessed are the meek,” said Jesus, but they worship bullies.
“Love thy neighbor,” he commanded, but they vilify immigrants, LGBTQ+ people, and anyone who doesn’t fit their rigid definition of morality or what it means to be American.
“What you do for the least of these, you do for me,” he promised, but they cheer on policies that strip food assistance, healthcare, and dignity from the most vulnerable.

They are modern-day Pharisees, quick to judge others while corrupting the very faith they claim to uphold. Their faith is performative, their piety hollow, their actions as cold as the heart of a miser counting his coins on Christmas Eve.

Christian nationalist politicians pass laws designed to oppress, exclude, and exploit, wielding religion not as a source of guidance but as a weapon to strip away the rights of those who don’t conform to their narrow, self-serving vision of America. They drape themselves in the language of faith while embodying its complete antithesis, warping the Gospel’s call for love, compassion, and justice into a rallying cry for power, division, and control. They don’t just twist the cross into a cudgel—they would slam the door on Mary and Joseph at the manger, hardened hearts blind to the very God they claim to serve, more concerned with enforcing borders than offering sanctuary.

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Holding Them Accountable

And yet, these same people will sit across from you this holiday season, defending their choices with excuses. Don’t let them get away with it. Their vote isn’t just a personal preference—it’s an endorsement of everything Trump represents: cruelty, division, and a betrayal of the values this season is supposed to celebrate.

When they say it’s about the economy, remind them that no tax cut justifies putting children in cages. Trump’s tax policies benefited the ultra-wealthy while leaving working families with crumbs and ballooning the national debt. His trade wars hurt farmers and raised prices for everyday Americans. No promise of prosperity erases the memory of children ripped from their parents and locked in cages, many still waiting to be reunited.

If they claim patriotism, ask how supporting an aspiring autocrat honors the nation. Trump undermined democracy at every turn, from inciting a violent insurrection against the Capitol to praising authoritarian regimes. True patriots defend justice, equality, and the rule of law—the very foundations of democracy that Trump seeks to dismantle—not leaders who trample on these ideals.

If they invoke “family values,” remind them that separating families at the border is as far from family values as one can get. Trump’s administration will again tear children from their parents, slash food assistance for struggling families, and strip healthcare from those who needed it most. Family values mean creating a society where all families—regardless of race, gender, or origin—can thrive in safety, dignity, and love—not legislating control over women’s bodies or erasing LGBTQ+ families from public life.

And when they say it’s about “stopping wokeness,” ask them what they fear. Is it the idea that others might be treated with the same respect and humanity they take for granted? The Christmas story itself is about a poor, refugee family seeking shelter—a tale far more aligned with values of justice, inclusion, and care for the marginalized than with the GOP’s platform of fear and exclusion. The real war on Christmas isn’t about inclusive greetings or diverse celebrations but about rejecting generosity, humility, and love for all.

If they claim their faith, remind them what Christ stood for: welcoming the stranger, loving the outcast, and caring for the vulnerable. The Gospel’s call to ‘love thy neighbor’ wasn’t a suggestion—it was a commandment. And yet, they cheer policies that demonize immigrants, strip food and healthcare from the needy, and legislate cruelty under the guise of righteousness. Their faith is hollow when weighed against their actions.

This isn’t about picking a fight for the sake of it. It’s about standing up for truth and justice, even when it’s uncomfortable. Letting their reprehensible vote slide in the name of “silent night” civility isn’t peace—it’s surrender. Silence at the table doesn’t just enable their cruelty; it lets hate thrive and metastasize, while their hearts—Grinch-like—shrink two sizes too small. This holiday season, don’t let the glow of the tree mask the darkness of their choices. Speak up. Defend the light. And remind them—and yourself—that the values of this season demand more than words; they demand action.

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The Real War on Christmas

The real “war on Christmas” isn’t being waged by people saying “Happy Holidays” or the presence of a Menorah in the town square. It’s being waged by Trump, the GOP, and the Christian right, who have trampled the very values this season stands for: kindness, generosity, and peace.

Let’s not mince words—Santa’s list is clear, and the GOP isn’t just naughty; they’re a disgrace. They’ve chosen cruelty over compassion, division over unity, and greed over goodwill, all while wrapping themselves in the guise of faith and patriotism. If the GOP rewrote the Nativity, the wise men would be turned away as immigrants, the shepherds taxed into oblivion, and the Holy Family evicted for squatting in a stable.

This year, when you sit at the holiday table, don’t let the darkness creep in unchecked. Be the light. Speak up. Push back against the darkness they invite into our shared space. Remind them—and yourself—that the values we claim to celebrate demand action—not “all is calm, all is bright.”

Because Trump, the GOP, and their enablers are the antithesis of decency—they are the real war on Christmas. And this season, we must reclaim its meaning: love in the face of hate, light in the shadow of cruelty, and hope that endures beyond despair.

With the spirit of the season,
“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,”
Mersault

P.S. And for the love of all that is holy, stay far away from the mistletoe if they’re lurking nearby.

(If you enjoyed this piece, I’d love for you to subscribe for more. Your support—whether by restacking, liking, commenting, or using the Buy Me a Coffee button—keeps me motivated and energized to expose the hypocrisy, corruption, cruelty, and lies of Trump, the Republicans, and their enablers.)

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Other Open Letters by Mersault you may like…

An Open Letter to My Gloating MAGA Neighbor

You Know Who You Are: Your House Still Draped in MAGA Banners, Red Hat Firmly on Your Head, and Truck Plastered with Trump Stickers

An Open Letter to Trump Voters

There Are Two Types of Trump Voters. Which Are You?

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