Conservative Catholics form new centre of power in the White House

Whether J.D. Vance had a hand in it or not, the vice president-elect will be surrounded by conservative Catholics in the president's new cabinet of choice. They are likely to support his mission, which he summarised in one sentence in a recent speech to Catholic business leaders: "Without a Christian renaissance, America is dying. Our country must find its way back to God."

How this is to be achieved with the mass deportation of millions of Catholic Latinos, which is planned for the days following Donald Trump's inauguration on 20 January, remains to be seen. This will be carried out by another Catholic who has officially been given the position of "border czar" in the White House. We are talking about Thomas Homan. He was already responsible for separating families at the border during Trump's first term in office and is once again promising to crack down. He said it was time for "the illegals" to pack their bags.

"Doctrinally completely in line"

The future Secretary of State Marco Rubio first turned his back on the Catholic Church and then found his way back to it. "Theologically and doctrinally, I am completely in line with the Roman Catholic Church," emphasises the son of Cuban immigrants, who is married to the Catholic Jeanette Dousdebes.

The future UN ambassador Elise Stefanik is also Catholic. The strict opponent of abortion has no problem combining the Catholic faith with American nationalism. It is precisely this course that she wants to represent at the United Nations.

Other Catholics in the Trump cabinet are the designated CIA Director John Ratcliffe and the Kennedy scion Robert F., who underwent a spectacular transformation from celebrated environmental lawyer and Democrat to Trump supporter. As the designated Secretary of Health and Human Services, he is now supposed to lead the 80,000 employees of the authorities in order to "make America healthy again". His own story is characterised by addiction and redemption. He confided to the Catholic broadcaster EWTN that "a deep spiritual enlightenment" saved him from his drug addiction.

Among non-Catholics, the nomination of FOX presenter Pete Hegseth for Pentagon chief stands out. The ex-National Guardsman was not allowed to report for duty at Joe Biden's inauguration because the security services had concerns about certain tattoos on his body. Among other things, he bears the "Jerusalem Cross" and the Latin slogan "Deus Vult" ("God wills it"). Both symbols originate from the time of the Crusaders and are now recognisable symbols of right-wing extremist groups.

Goal: Christian nationalist state

The head of the Catholic portal Crux, John Allen, sees Trump's personnel tableau as "no coincidence". The president-elect has understood that he needs the Catholic right in order to be able to rule. "What we are seeing here is an attempt to establish a Christian nationalist state."

The blueprint for this was provided by another influential Catholic. Kevin Roberts is the head of the Heritage Foundation, which is close to Trump, and the architect of "Project 2025", the 900-page blueprint for the autocratic reorganisation of the USA. Roberts is a close friend of J.D. Vance, who wrote the foreword to his book "Dawn's Early Light", which was published after the elections.

The Christian nationalists on the sidelines are cheered on by the right-wing Catholic Steve Bannon with his podcast "War Room". After Trump's victory on 5 November, he announced in line with the vice president-elect: "The battle for the soul of America has begun."