How has the ReAwaken America Tour curated its speaker lineup and handled internal criticism over false prophecies?
Executive summary
The ReAwaken America Tour assembles a mix of political figures, celebrity entrepreneurs, conspiracy-minded commentators and revivalist preachers to create a branded fusion of evangelical revival and right‑wing political activism, promoting themes like election fraud and resistance to public‑health mandates [1] [2]. The tour has courted controversy for elevating speakers who advance false prophecies and extreme rhetoric, and has responded unevenly to internal and external criticism — sometimes distancing from the most toxic voices, while largely maintaining the overall lineup and message [3] [4].
1. How the organizers assemble a politically charged revival
Clay Clark and Michael Flynn curate a traveling event that intentionally blurs worship, political messaging and activist recruiting; organizers highlight topics such as “faith, family and freedom,” election integrity, and opposition to vaccines and mandates, and they invite a rotating roster of politicians, pastors, pundits and fringe figures to speak at each stop [1] [5]. High‑profile conservative names — including Michael Flynn, MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell and commentators who enjoy mass followings — are regular draws that help the tour sell tickets and media attention [6] [2]. The result is a lineup designed to appeal to an audience primed for both spiritual consolation and political grievance, not a neutral or academically curated slate [1].
2. A lineup that mixes mainstream conservatives and conspiracists
The tour’s speaker lists have included establishment‑adjacent figures like Eric Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. alongside activists tied to QAnon themes, vaccine skepticism, and election denialism, making the program a deliberate cross‑pollination of mainstream name recognition and movement‑level messaging [2] [3]. Organizers tout diversity onstage in demographic terms, even as critics argue the content promotes Christian nationalism and conspiratorial framing of public life [7] [8]. Reporting has documented frequent claims that the 2020 election was stolen and that public‑health measures are part of sinister agendas — assertions that courts and mainstream fact‑checking have repeatedly rejected [1] [2].
3. False prophecies and incendiary claims that prompted backlash
Some speakers have moved beyond political claims into explicit prophetic threats or apocalyptic warnings — for example, Bo Polny’s prediction that an “angel of death” would come for named politicians — episodes that drew attention and alarm from faith leaders and reporters [4]. Other speakers have advanced extreme rhetoric linking vaccines to “genocide” or urging spiritual warfare against civic institutions, language that has triggered protests from local religious communities and calls for boycotts by Christian organizations concerned about “false prophets” and Christian nationalism [2] [6].
4. Internal and interfaith criticism, and sporadic rejoinders from organizers
Mainline and local pastors, plus organized Christian groups, have publicly repudiated the tour’s theology and tactics, staging live‑streamed counterprograms and petitions urging boycotts while warning worshipers about false prophecy and the politicization of the pulpit [6] [4]. Municipal and venue reactions have included cancellations and heightened scrutiny; some venues pulled events after petitions and public pressure, and law‑enforcement officials have expressed concern about potential spillover effects [9] [10]. The organizers have at times pushed back against critics, framing objections as censorship or political targeting [2].
5. When the tour severs ties — selective distancing, not wholesale reform
Faced with specific controversies — notably antisemitic praise for Hitler from two regular speakers — the tour removed Scott McKay and Charlie Ward from a scheduled Trump National Doral appearance after widespread reporting and objections, a targeted response that critics said was too little, too late [3]. That action illustrates the tour’s pattern: it will drop individual figures whose statements create untenable public relations risks, but it otherwise preserves the broader mix of conspiratorial and mainstream voices that define its brand [3] [1].
6. The broader pattern: cultivation over correction
Overall, the ReAwaken America Tour curates a speaker lineup to galvanize a sympathetic base by amplifying grievance narratives and prophetic urgency, and it handles internal criticism through narrow reputational management — removing the most incendiary faces when necessary while continuing to platform contested ideas that energize attendees [1] [3]. Reporting shows the tour remains a locus for both political mobilization and theological controversy, provoking persistent debate inside the Christian world and in wider civic life about the limits of prophecy, political religion, and accountability [2] [8].