Is Ottawa County becoming a 'blueprint for America'? What happens next?

OTTAWA COUNTY — “When the higher-ranking civil authority makes unjust or immoral law, policy or court opinion, the law or lesser-ranking civil authority has both a God-given right and duty not to obey — and if necessary to actively resist.”

Those are the words of Rev. Matt Trewhella, a Brookfield, Wisconsin, pastor who has called the murder of an abortion provider "justifiable homicide," advocated for the creation of anti-abortion-focused militia and compared coronavirus pandemic-related mask mandates to the Holocaust.

The Detroit native founded the militant "Missionaries to the Preborn", a Pentecostal firebrand known for controversial rhetoric. He's preached to congregants to do "the most loving thing" by buying their children "an SKS rifle and 500 rounds of ammunition," boasting that he taught his own 16-month-old the location of his "trigger finger."

He now uses terminology like “pretend-demic” and “the steal,” referring to the COVID-19 pandemic — which killed an estimated 7 million people worldwide — and former President Donald Trump’s debunked claims about the 2020 U.S. presidential election.

On May 10, Trewhella spoke at a local GOP fundraiser at the county’s offices in West Olive, welcomed by the new Ottawa County Board of Commissioners Chair Joe Moss and Vice Chair Sylvia Rhodea and the organization they co-founded, Ottawa Impact.

An audio recording of the speech was provided to The Sentinel.

Trewhella had nothing but praise for Ottawa Impact, an ultraconservative Christian group created in 2021 that helped Moss, Rhodea and six others unseat traditional Republican incumbents in August to win a controlling majority of the 11-member board. (Two later publicly distanced themselves from the group.)

After being sworn into office, OI made quick work enacting several controversial changes, including firing the county administrator and corporate legal counsel, eliminating the county’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Office and attempting to demote the health officer.

“They saw their governor was a psychopath, and the local county commissioners were blindly doing her bidding,” Trewhella said of Ottawa Impact. “And when they took office, their very first acts were to remove the health director Nazi and replace her with a sane person. And they also completely abolished and eliminated the office of diversity, equity and inclusion, which is nothing more than a pipeline for racism and homosex. They ended all that perversion upon the citizens.”

He also urged OI to prepare for “a fight.”

“When Moses met with Pharaoh, he didn't say, ‘Oh, sure. I'll let them all go.’ When the colonists issued their Declaration of Independence, King George (didn't) say, ‘OK, let's bring the troops home.’ No, there was a fight. There's a conflict. Whenever good men stand in opposition to evil, there will be a fight. Understand your confrontation is needed and necessary.”

Moss and Rhodea have indicated they're on board with Trewhella’s message.

They created a joint YouTube video — played prior to Trewhella’s speech — that endorses the pastor’s book, “The Doctrine of the Lesser Magistrates: A Proper Resistance to Tyranny and a Repudiation of Unlimited Obedience to Civil Government.”

And, although COVID-19 health mandates are now in the rearview mirror, Moss and Rhodea describe Ottawa County’s government as though it’s in crisis.

“Taking back our nation. Defending American values. Protecting the people starts bottom up,” Moss says in the video. “You have to work from the ground up. … No one is coming to rescue us.”

“One thing I have learned is that it’s no longer enough to speak,” Rhodea says in the video. “We need to do more than that.”

Last week, Moss announced the county will consider Tuesday, May 23, a resolution to declare Ottawa a “constitutional county,” a largely nonbinding declaration that encourages local law officers like the sheriff and county prosecutor to not enforce state and federal laws they deem unconstitutional.

With a controlling majority of the board, the resolution is likely to pass, but experts say the legality of the concept is problematic.

“There are lots of crazy legal theories over time that have come and gone that fringe groups have latched on to,” said Justin R. Long, an associate professor at Wayne State University who specializes in state constitutionalism. “From a legal perspective, there's absolutely nothing to the idea that a county sheriff is the highest constitutional officer in the county, that's just nonsense in the American legal structure. But there's the law … and then there's what people believe.”

Trewhella wants to duplicate what's happening in Ottawa County nationwide.

“What they have done and are doing here is a blueprint for counties across America,” he said.

What would becoming a ‘constitutional county’ mean for Ottawa?

Although the resolution being considered Tuesday talks about a “constitutional county,” the wording repeatedly emphasizes the Second Amendment and the “right to bear arms,” as well as the protection of parental rights under the 14th Amendment.

Although the phrases “parents” and “parental rights” are not found in the 14th Amendment, conservatives have argued since the 1990s that the due process clause within the amendment “protects the fundamental right of parents to direct the care, upbringing and education of their children.”

Although the board cannot direct how the sheriff and prosecutor perform their duties, Moss’ resolution “strongly encourages them to continuously act in a constitutional manner” and says the board will not authorize or appropriate any funds or resources “for the purpose of enforcing any statute, law, rule, order or regulation that restricts the rights of any law-abiding citizen.”

Ottawa County Sheriff Steve Kempker said his office will continue to provide professional, ethical law enforcement and correctional services with a focus on customer service.

“Also, to support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Michigan and to enforce all laws to preserve public order, reduce fear and provide safe and secure environments in our communities,” he wrote in an email to The Sentinel.

County Prosecutor Lee Fisher made a similar statement via email to The Sentinel, saying, “I do not believe the views expressed will have any impact on the functioning of the prosecutor’s office.”

Fisher previously spoke to the board about their interest in becoming a Second Amendment "sanctuary," after the Ottawa GOP presented a draft resolution and requested commissioners adopt language to protect citizens’ gun rights.

Commissioner Jacob Bonnema asked Fisher during an April 11 meeting about his stance, and Fisher said it would be inappropriate for him to give an opinion, since it’s his duty to review violations of the law, whatever the law might be.

“I believe I was sent a proposed resolution for my perusal and commentary,” Fisher said. “I don’t believe it’s appropriate for me as the county prosecutor to publicly support, or not support, any type of resolution, any type of political statement, which the resolution was in my opinion.

“If there’s violations of the gun laws, whatever they may turn out to be … I have to objectively and fairly review those complaints and those investigations to decide if somebody’s going to be charged with violating the law or not. I don't think it’s appropriate for me to come out ahead of time and state my position on this, one way or the other, given my unique position in the criminal justice system.”

Behind the scenes, Fisher communicated to party leaders a similar sentiment.

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“As a gun owner myself, I do believe that the right to bear arms enumerated in the Second Amendment is extremely important,” Fisher wrote in a March 2 email provided to The Sentinel. “When I took my oath of office, I swore to support and defend the Constitution. … However, I do not believe it is appropriate for me, in my position a(s) prosecuting attorney, to publicly support any political resolution that may be perceived to affect my ethical responsibility to make fair, unbiased, and objective decisions to prosecute, or not prosecute, future cases that may come before me.”

Fisher’s statements did not impress some leaders.

Joel Studebaker, former chair of the Ottawa County GOP and current chief of staff for MIGOP Chair Kristina Karamo, told Fisher “the current climate of our state requires bold actions, including resolutions, to remind everyone of our constitutional tenets and principles.

“I believe the people of Ottawa County and our Republican Party will move forward with full alignment and resolve, both inherently and boldly, as a county that abides by the constitution as the highest authority in the hierarchy of law."

Long said the Michigan Constitution outlines duties and powers for counties and their respective officials, and that their authority comes from the statutes passed by the Legislature and judicial decisions — not from any other authority.

“I think the overarching principle here is the idea that the exact same authority that permits them to be a sheriff in the first place is the same authority that they're rejecting,” Long said of the proponents for a “constitutional county.”

“So, if you take the whole thing, if you take the authority to be a sheriff or a prosecuting attorney, you take it subject to all the powers, but also all the limitations. You can't pick and choose which ones you like — because they all come from the same source, which is ultimately the state Constitution and through that Legislature.”

Long said if a civil officer didn't perform his or her job duties, there are several recourses outlined in state law:

• Impeachment, where the Legislature has the authority to remove civil officers for “corrupt conduct in office or for crimes or misdemeanors.”

• Recall, where voters have the ability to call a special election to replace a civil officer.

• Lawsuits, where people affected by the civil officer’s decisions could file for adjudication in the courts.

“Any legally trained person would recognize it as nonsense,” Long said. “They're borrowing the credibility of the law for an idea that really has nothing to do with the law. It's not like they really believe that the law is on their side, they believe that the other side feels obliged to follow the law. Their objective is, quite literally, to break down the rule of law so that they can do what they want to do because they don't believe in it in the first place.”

“It's a kind of stolen valor because you're dressing up in something honorable for the sake of doing dishonorable things,” he said.

Additionally, Long said, the strategy Ottawa Impact seems to support could ultimately saddle taxpayers with legal fees and settlements.

“They can fight for the soul of the county, but they shouldn't want to pay for their enemies’ warriors,” he said.

Is an uprising coming? 

Trewhella told Ottawa County Republicans that traditional civil servants are “wicked tyrants” who “always count on the blind compliance of the lesser authorities in order to get their evil down in the fabric of society.”

“The interposition of the lesser authorities is massively important to stop evil in a nation,” he said. “We are not to be the slaves of men and as a Christian people, we cannot be subjugated by the state. Our love, our loyalty, our fealty is to another — Christ. And this is what brings us into conflict with the state.”

“It sounds like he is certainly part of, if not leading and organizing, a county movement to do these kinds of things,” said Frederick Clarkson, author of “Eternal Hostility: The Struggle Between Theocracy and Democracy.” “But it wouldn't surprise me that if there's not a considerable degree of coordination towards a county-level uprising, initially with the constitutional sheriff.”

Clarkson has written about politics and religion for more than 40 years. He said what’s happening in Ottawa County “can all sound pretty kooky and pretty fringy, until you see that there's a coherence to it.”

“You know, we're dealing with a situation here where a bunch of yahoos have taken over the board — people with no experience in government,” he said. “They're doing things that are arguably outside of their mandate, certainly controversial at best, and they bring in Matt Trewhella who tells them it's all God's will.”

He said it’s an attractive message to people who feel marginalized by the mainstream.

“You know, you're giving people a sense of ‘God wants you when you're broken, you are the key to the future of God's kingdom, he is rising you up to be his army.’ And it's a powerful idea that to find such transcendent value at a time when society all around you does not value you.”

More: Ottawa Impact's passion for protecting residents could actually be hurting them

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In his speech, Trewhella called society’s current form of Christianity “weak” and “pathetic,” telling Ottawa Republicans to not let local faith leaders “keep you on their little religious hamster wheel to nowhere, where there is no application of your Christianity to everyday life.”

“We have pillared a form of Christianity in this country, which is incapable of reforming itself,” Trewhella said. “Christ will reform his bride. He will purify her. Understand that his judgment upon this nation is first and foremost towards us. He's going to take this worthless, weak, pathetic form of Christianity and drive it into the ground. I've already noticed he's building a tougher, more biblical form of Christianity. And the rest of the nation will be judged, too.”

That messaging worries area faith leaders.

Keith Mannes is an ordained pastor in the United Church of Christ and has worked as a chaplain and minister for 35 years.

“To me, it is concerning because I am a Christian pastor and, yes, I believe the message of God via Jesus is at stake,” he said. “This kind of religion uses God as a pretext for violence, exclusion and racism. If your heart wants to wreak vengeance, you can twist the Bible so that it becomes a vehicle of your own vicious attitude.”

Clarkson pointed out that Trewhella, and other fundamentalist leaders of far-right religious groups, tend to use the teachings and names of the Old Testament, rather than Jesus’ compassion and forgiveness that defined the New Testament.

“Look at who they offer as role models for contemporary Christians. The people who were the the overt, double warriors of the Old Testament: Joshua, Gideon, Esther, Rahab, David. More broadly across Evangelical groups, it's an ideological creep. It's very dangerous in terms of ‘you’re not looking to model yourself after Jesus, you're looking to model yourself after Joshua,’ who was a genocidal warrior.”

Mannes said Jesus clearly rejected political domination and violence as a means to advance his vision for the world.

“There were forces all around him expecting him to exert his physical rule and kingship. They expected him to raise up an army and set up his political kingdom. When he did not do this, they killed him.”

Mannes said Trewhella’s messaging was dangerous.

“It’s like sticking your hand into a Jesus puppet and making him say things that he never said, and in fact, spoke against,” he said.

Vern Swierenga, a pastor in the Christian Reformed Church in North America, agreed.

“Sadly, the gospel Trewhella propagates does more harm to the Christian witness than good,” Swierenga said. He misunderstands Christian 'freedom.' He conflates political freedom with Christian freedom. They are not the same thing. Jesus did not die on Calvary’s Cross to procure our political freedoms, he died to set us free from sin and death.”

Rev. Jared C. Cramer, of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, said language of warfare is a part of the scripture tradition, but it needs to be very carefully considered.

“Ephesians 6 is clear that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but the powers of this world. The problem is when people like this speaker choose to make their battle directly against flesh and blood people — this is where the Crusades and the Inquisition came from, deep sins in the history of the church and from which we need to repent, not try to restore.”

Mannes said the overarching message from the Bible story is that Jesus died for mankind’s sins.

“Jesus is the only Lord of us. Moses is not the Lord of us. Old Testament leaders are not the Lord of us. The life teaching and example of Jesus are what we're supposed to be emulating,” Mannes said. “And now it's become ‘We're going to change things with force and with violence. And we're going to make you believe that, too.'”

Clarkson said he doesn’t see groups like Ottawa Impact backing down from what they're trying to achieve.

“I mean, we have an operating system, and sure, it can be messy and clunky and not always operate correctly. But these guys are acting like (it) doesn't even exist, or, to the extent that it does exist, it's corrupt and the wrong thing,” he said. “But they've got the right answers, even though they're profoundly ignorant.”

He said fundamentalist groups tend to attract members who long for simpler times in U.S. history, even if they're romanticizing things.

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“There are a lot of tendencies and factions within this where a lot of people are pining for the ‘50s and the Ozzie and Harriet worldview. You know, it's sort of nostalgia for a country that never really was. I was asked by friends, ‘Isn’t this the most polarized time ever in American history?’ Have you forgotten the Civil War? The Civil Rights Movement? How about the anti-war movement?”

Ultimately, it's up to all citizens to decide how they want their government to operate, Clarkson said.

“It's everybody's responsibility to figure out what's going on and to participate in meaningful ways, right? That's the only way democracy is going to work or if it's even going to survive.”

— Sarah Leach is executive editor of The Holland Sentinel. Contact her at sarah.leach@hollandsentinel.com. Follow her on Twitter @SentinelLeach.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Is Ottawa County becoming a 'blueprint for America'? What happens next?