LDS Leaders Should Excommunicate MAGA Mormons

The LDS church should excommunicate Mike Lee, Spencer Cox, Kai Schwemmer, Nick Shirley, and Bruce Jessen, who have publicly embarrassed the church by telling consequential lies, developing torture protocols, and inspiring acts of violence and murder.

My excommunication from the LDS church was announced publicly during a stakewide meeting. For Mormons, an individual congregation is a ward. Multiple wards make up a stake. I held positions at both the ward and stake level. When I asked my stake president why he’d announced such a personal act of church discipline so publicly, he said, “You’re known to too many people. You’ve told too many members you’re gay. We had to show everyone that you’re no longer part of the Lord’s church.”

Sonia Johnson, a prominent feminist, was publicly excommunicated after a 37-day fast in efforts to pass the Equal Rights Amendment. Kate Kelly was excommunicated for her work with Ordain Women. Fawn Brodie, who wrote the first authoritative history of Mormon founder Joseph Smith, was also excommunicated. So was D. Michael Quinn, another prominent Mormon historian. And so were several other high-profile members of the September Six. 

Lots of “bad” Mormons are excommunicated regularly, and no one beyond their family and closest friends might even be aware. The more well known the fallen are, the more loudly their excommunications are broadcast to the world.

So one wonders why prominent Mormons today who publicly say and do the most horrible things are still proudly accepted by LDS church leaders. There are varying levels of discipline, of course. One could simply lose their temple recommend, still be able to partake of the sacrament at weekly services but no longer be allowed in the most sacred of spaces. Friends and family might not even notice this level of discipline. Or one could be disfellowshipped, be able to attend services but not be allowed to partake of the sacrament.

Some members, though, deserve the highest level of church discipline—excommunication.

Bruce Jessen, a psychologist who helped develop the CIA’s torture protocols, was afterward called by his church superiors to serve as a bishop over his local ward. His leaders didn’t seem particularly put off by his promotion of torture. Many of those brutal methods were and still are used against men never even charged with a crime. After public backlash, Jessen’s “call” to the bishopric was rescinded, but not his membership. LDS leaders may have wanted Jessen to lie low, but they didn’t want to get rid of him. He wasn’t that big a stain on the church.

Nick Shirley went to Ukraine, where he was shown bombed hospitals and apartment buildings, but then made a video implying U.S. tax dollars were going to a country that wasn’t at war. He made false, highly inaccurate accusations against Somalis in Minneapolis, which led to many weeks of violence by ICE agents against US citizens, two of whom were murdered on camera for the world to see. He’s made several other “misleading” claims that clearly fall under “bearing false witness against thy neighbor.”

To be granted a temple recommend in the LDS church, one must pass a series of “worthiness” interviews, one by a bishop and one by a stake president. One of the questions in those interviews is, “Are you honest in your dealings with your fellow man?”

Another requirement is to avow that you’re not beholden to any other religion. But many prominent LDS politicians, podcasters, and pundits do in fact belong to the cult of MAGA. That’s not an opinion. There are clear guidelines as to what constitutes a cult, and MAGA fanatics check off more than enough boxes to qualify.

It’s difficult to list all the lies Mike Lee has told as a US Senator. The fact that he aided attempts to overturn the 2020 election and then supported Trump’s unfounded claims that the election was stolen should be enough on their own, but that barely scratches the surface. He also claimed that some of the January 6 insurrectionists were FBI agents and leftists. He blamed the assassination of a Democratic lawmaker and her husband on “Marxists.” He lied about COVID “lockdowns” that didn’t exist. How many impactful lies must he tell before he’s considered an embarrassment to the church? Recent reports show that Lee typically posts over 100 times a day on X. Consider the weight of evidence against him. How many lies and offensive comments must he post before he no longer qualifies for a temple recommend?  

Mike Lee blocked funding for 9/11 first responders. He proudly compared Trump to Moroni from the Book of Mormon. For many years, statues of Moroni adorned the top of many LDS temples. How many embarrassing statements must Lee make before LDS leaders consider him embarrassing?

Governor Spencer Cox, who did his two-year Mormon mission in Mexico, supports ICE, a group that has been targeting legal immigrants, U.S. citizens, and legal asylum seekers. Even if Cox had never set foot outside the U.S., his lack of compassion alone should be an embarrassment to the church, much less his support of a secret police force. And this is hardly his only problematic position.

And now we have Kai Schwemmer, a student at Brigham Young University who has just been selected as leader of the College Republicans of America. He “served” his two-year Mormon mission in Argentina. What has he done that will damage the reputation of the church? How about his claims that he believes in indiscriminate mass deportations? That he thinks women aren’t fit to serve in public office? That he doesn’t want to see anyone wearing a hijab in America? That he believes gay men are weaponizing gyms to spread AIDS? That he supports criminalizing abortion and wouldn’t be opposed to legalizing slavery?

Kai Schwemmer is against universal suffrage. He has accepted the label of being a “Mormon Nick Fuentes.” Many of Fuentes’s followers are Groypers. Fuentes has recently suggested “breeding gulags for women.” Despite that, Schwemmer has still recently declared himself a fan. Is none of this embarrassing to LDS leaders? Or just not enough of it? What parts are they okay with?

In Nazi Germany, Mormon teenager Helmuth Hubener was arrested for opposing Hitler. Hubener’s bishop immediately excommunicated the young man. Only decades later did LDS church leaders realize the excommunication was more embarrassing to the church than his opposition to Hitler, and they blamed the excommunication on the rogue acts of the bishop. “The church” wasn’t responsible.

So what’s the story now? Are LDS leaders not embarrassed by support for secret police and kidnappings and blatant discrimination against women and followers of other religions? Are LDS leaders more embarrassed to say they’re against torture? Against brutality? Against documented lies?

The sad truth is that LDS leaders aren’t excommunicating these prominent Mormons doing horrific things publicly because they aren’t, in fact, embarrassed by them. LDS leaders aren’t ashamed of their behavior. They approve of these monsters and think these men are setting good examples. No need to discipline them publicly or even privately. “By their fruits ye shall know them.”

Of course, it’s not just high-profile Mormons who are degrading the LDS church. It includes far too many everyday members in good standing who are MAGA loyalists as well.

That says an awful lot about LDS leaders. But who’s going to excommunicate all those apostles?

Perhaps it will be other Christian nationalists, who will soon enough decide that Mormons aren’t “real” Christians. And then they’ll be cast out along with the Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Christian Latinos, Christian Africans, and LGBTQ people they’ve collectively been attacking for years.

Are all Latter-day Saints “bad”? Are they all MAGA cultists?

I don’t believe so. But at some point, when so many prominent Mormons are supporting lies, cruelty, and fascism, remaining aligned with such a group does say something about you, too. A key feature of gaslighting, of abusive relationships, and of cults is to make people afraid of leaving an environment you know is bad. But if you can’t change things from the inside, and the organization no longer reflects your values, perhaps it’s time to work up the courage and self-respect to leave.

Ultimately, only we are responsible for our choices, both the immoral and the moral ones. Let’s all try to make better choices by no longer actively or passively supporting lies, cruelty, and violence.