Trump claims Democrat candidate Aftyn Behn ‘hates Christianity’

President Donald Trump has claimed that the Democratic nominee in a special congressional election that could influence the balance of power in Washington, D.C., “hates Christianity” as polling predicts a tight race ahead of Tuesday’s election.  

During a phone call with Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson on Monday, who was campaigning in Franklin, Tennessee, for Republican candidate Matt Van Epps, the president told voters over cellphone that “the whole world is watching” as Republicans work to defeat Democrat nominee Aftyn Behn in the Dec. 2 special election for the state’s 7th Congressional District.

In a separate message posted to Truth Social on Sunday, Trump urged voters to support Van Epps in Tuesday’s special election to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of former Republican Rep. Mark Green. Although he did not mention Van Epps’ opponent by name, he urged voters living in the district to reject Behn. 

Trump described Behn as “a woman who hates Christianity, will take away your guns, wants Open Borders, Transgender for everybody, men in women’s sports, and openly disdains Country music. She said all of these things precisely, and without question — IT’S ON TAPE!”

Trump’s suggestion that Behn hates Christianity likely stems from an audio clip released by the Republican rapid response account RNC Research last week showing the Democratic state legislator discussing her views on prayer in the Republican-controlled Tennessee General Assembly in a 2024 appearance on the “Red State Blue Mom” podcast: “As someone who is more secular, I have a hard time when religion is at the core of everything we do in the legislature. And so, for example, on the House floor, we say a prayer every session.”

“Some committees open up with prayer. We also stand for the pledge,” she noted. “There are also prayer groups in the legislature that meet routinely. There are Christian pastors that have a lot of say and proximity to power in the legislature and dictate a lot of what the power players do, and it is uncomfortable.” 

The Christian Post reached out to Behn’s campaign for comment on Trump’s assertion that she “hates Christianity.” A response was not received by press time. 

Behn also made negative comments about country music in a Feb. 1, 2020, episode of the podcast she co-hosted titled “GRITS.” The audio, originally recorded in 2019, shows Behn declaring, “I’ve been heavily involved with the Nashville mayoral race because I hate this city, I hate the bachelorettes, I hate the pedal taverns, I hate country music.”

“I hate all of the things that make Nashville apparently an ‘it city’ to the rest of the country,” she said. While Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District includes part of the city of Nashville, which votes strongly Democratic in presidential elections, the city’s influence in the district is counterbalanced by the presence of rural, Republican counties. 

Behn addressed concerns about the years-old tape in a video posted to X on Nov. 20, insisting that her 2020 comments do not reflect her views about the city: “I always want Nashville to be better, right? I want Nashville to be a place where working people can thrive, right? But sure, I get mad at ‘The Bachelorette’ sometimes. I get mad at the pedal taverns, right?” 

“You’re talking to someone who has cried no less than 10 times in the Country Music Hall of Fame,” she said. “We are so close to winning this race, which is why these rumors are getting more wild.”

Trump’s plea to voters comes as polling ahead of Tuesday’s race shows a tight contest. Emerson College released a poll of 600 likely voters in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District last week, including those who have already voted. The survey found that 48% of respondents planned to back Van Epps while 46% supported Behn. 

Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District supported Trump by 22 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election, meaning that polling predicts a noticeable shift to the left compared to last year. Tuesday’s special election takes place less than a month after Democrats dominated statewide elections in Virginia and New Jersey. 

If Behn wins the election, Democrats would have one additional member in the closely divided U.S. House while Republicans would see their narrow majority shrink. Following the 2024 election, Republicans won 220 seats in the U.S. House while Democrats won 215. 

The winner of Tuesday’s election will finish Green’s term and have to run for a full two-year term as part of next year’s midterm elections. Following Tuesday’s special election, two vacancies will remain in the U.S. House in two seats formerly held by Democrats: New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District and Texas’ 18th Congressional District. 

President Donald Trump has claimed that the Democratic nominee in a special congressional election that could influence the balance of power in Washington, D.C., “hates Christianity” as polling predicts a tight race ahead of Tuesday’s election.  

During a phone call with Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson on Monday, who was campaigning in Franklin, Tennessee, for Republican candidate Matt Van Epps, the president told voters over cellphone that “the whole world is watching” as Republicans work to defeat Democrat nominee Aftyn Behn in the Dec. 2 special election for the state’s 7th Congressional District.

In a separate message posted to Truth Social on Sunday, Trump urged voters to support Van Epps in Tuesday’s special election to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of former Republican Rep. Mark Green. Although he did not mention Van Epps’ opponent by name, he urged voters living in the district to reject Behn. 

Trump described Behn as “a woman who hates Christianity, will take away your guns, wants Open Borders, Transgender for everybody, men in women’s sports, and openly disdains Country music. She said all of these things precisely, and without question — IT’S ON TAPE!”

Trump’s suggestion that Behn hates Christianity likely stems from an audio clip released by the Republican rapid response account RNC Research last week showing the Democratic state legislator discussing her views on prayer in the Republican-controlled Tennessee General Assembly in a 2024 appearance on the “Red State Blue Mom” podcast: “As someone who is more secular, I have a hard time when religion is at the core of everything we do in the legislature. And so, for example, on the House floor, we say a prayer every session.”

“Some committees open up with prayer. We also stand for the pledge,” she noted. “There are also prayer groups in the legislature that meet routinely. There are Christian pastors that have a lot of say and proximity to power in the legislature and dictate a lot of what the power players do, and it is uncomfortable.” 

The Christian Post reached out to Behn’s campaign for comment on Trump’s assertion that she “hates Christianity.” A response was not received by press time. 

Behn also made negative comments about country music in a Feb. 1, 2020, episode of the podcast she co-hosted titled “GRITS.” The audio, originally recorded in 2019, shows Behn declaring, “I’ve been heavily involved with the Nashville mayoral race because I hate this city, I hate the bachelorettes, I hate the pedal taverns, I hate country music.”

“I hate all of the things that make Nashville apparently an ‘it city’ to the rest of the country,” she said. While Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District includes part of the city of Nashville, which votes strongly Democratic in presidential elections, the city’s influence in the district is counterbalanced by the presence of rural, Republican counties. 

Behn addressed concerns about the years-old tape in a video posted to X on Nov. 20, insisting that her 2020 comments do not reflect her views about the city: “I always want Nashville to be better, right? I want Nashville to be a place where working people can thrive, right? But sure, I get mad at ‘The Bachelorette’ sometimes. I get mad at the pedal taverns, right?” 

“You’re talking to someone who has cried no less than 10 times in the Country Music Hall of Fame,” she said. “We are so close to winning this race, which is why these rumors are getting more wild.”

Trump’s plea to voters comes as polling ahead of Tuesday’s race shows a tight contest. Emerson College released a poll of 600 likely voters in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District last week, including those who have already voted. The survey found that 48% of respondents planned to back Van Epps while 46% supported Behn. 

Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District supported Trump by 22 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election, meaning that polling predicts a noticeable shift to the left compared to last year. Tuesday’s special election takes place less than a month after Democrats dominated statewide elections in Virginia and New Jersey. 

If Behn wins the election, Democrats would have one additional member in the closely divided U.S. House while Republicans would see their narrow majority shrink. Following the 2024 election, Republicans won 220 seats in the U.S. House while Democrats won 215. 

The winner of Tuesday’s election will finish Green’s term and have to run for a full two-year term as part of next year’s midterm elections. Following Tuesday’s special election, two vacancies will remain in the U.S. House in two seats formerly held by Democrats: New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District and Texas’ 18th Congressional District.