U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a visit to the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 13, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Pastor Douglas Wilson, who heads Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho, isn't as well-known in the white evangelical world as the Rev. Franklin Graham, the Family Research Council's Tony Perkins or ex-Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr. But Wilson, now 72, is expanding his influenced in the GOP — especially among MAGA Republicans.

Never Trump conservative David French, in his August 14 column for the New York Times, lays out some reasons why Wilson is so disturbing and the ways in which he mirrors President Donald Trump.

From his praise of the 19th Century to his views on women, French warns, Wilson's views are extreme.

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"To simply call him patriarchal is too mild," French argues. "The body of churches he co-founded, the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches, includes pastors who believe that the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote, should be repealed and replaced by something called 'household voting,' where it's no longer one person, one vote, but one household, one vote."

The conservative Times columnist continues, "And who is the head of the household? The husband — a man who might consult with his wife, but would absolutely have the authority to make the final decision."

Despite Wilson's extreme views, French laments, more Republicans are openly embracing him — including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

"To say that a pastor like Wilson exists no more condemns all of evangelical Christianity — indeed, Wilson faces vigorous opposition in the evangelical church — than to say that the existence of radical imams condemns all of Islam," French argues. "A better question is to ask whether a person this cruel and extreme has real stature and influence — and whether his influence is on the wane or on the rise. As for Wilson, the answer is clear: His influence is growing."

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French adds, "Hegseth made that plain this month when he posted his support for Wilson after Wilson reiterated to CNN his support for Christian nationalism.

One of the "many reasons for Wilson's rise," according to French, is "squarely rooted in politics."

"When Donald Trump won the presidency in 2016, he inherited a recent Republican tradition: The Republican president isn't just a political leader — he's a de facto religious leader as well," the Never Trumper explains. "Leaders inspire imitators, and all too many people are open to pastors exhibiting the same values as the president they admire so much…. It's not that men like Wilson had no audience before Trump; it's that there is a new demand for Wilson's message because it matches the Trumpist spirit of this evangelical age. Trump is a profane, authoritarian man who delights in attacking his critics. Wilson is also a profane, authoritarian man who similarly delights in personal attacks."

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David French's full New York Times column is available at this link (subscription required).