President Trump on Monday touted his administration’s insurance policies to guard and promote faith in america, hailing the enter from prime non secular leaders who’ve molded a few of his actions.
The president, in remarks on the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., touted govt orders declaring there are solely two genders within the U.S., slashing federal funding for faculties over transgender training, and stopping transgender athletes from taking part in in ladies’s sports activities. He pressured that he desires to guard non secular leaders to allow them to discuss politics, anti-abortion activists and prayer in faculties.
Trump thanked his White Home Non secular Liberty Fee for guiding his work on these points, which has amounted to what a White Home press launch characterised as “100 victories for folks of religion.”
“You’re the people we want to hear from. We want to hear from you, I don’t want to hear from a lot of people,” Trump stated. “I hear from too many people — you’re the people we respect. Franklin [Graham] is incredible. All of the people who are up here, I want to hear from these people.”
The fee is chaired by former Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R) and vice chaired by Ben Carson, who was Trump’s Housing and City Improvement secretary in his first time period. It additionally contains the Rev. Franklin Graham — son of Billy Graham, who served as a religion chief for earlier presidents — and New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan.
The Rev. Paula White, who has served as a non secular adviser to Trump for years, is on the fee, in addition to Rabbi Meir Soloveichik and tv character “Dr.” Phil McGraw, amongst others.
Trump introduced in his remarks Monday two new initiatives geared toward pushing non secular expression — the Division of Schooling “soon” issuing steering defending the appropriate to prayer in public faculties, and the launch of “America Prayers” to ask Individuals to collect weekly in teams of 10 and pray forward of the 250th anniversary of america.
“What if 1 million people prayed for our country every single week between now and July 4? More specifically, what if believers all across this great nation got together with 10 people, friends, family members, colleagues, work associates? Ten people each week to pray for our country and for our fellow citizens. Let that sink in: 1 million people, every single week,” Housing and City Improvement Secretary Scott Turner stated on the museum.
“On behalf of President Trump … I’m inviting all Americans to pray with unwavering faith for the renewal of our nation and our fellow citizens. Amen. All Americans,” he stated.
Selling group prayer and prayer in class buildings builds on a Trump administration memo in July that declared federal staff can try to influence coworkers about why their non secular beliefs are “correct.”
The memo stated a number of workers ought to be allowed to have interaction in particular person or communal non secular expressions; workers can interact in conversations on non secular subjects “including attempting to persuade others of the correctness of their own religious views”; and federal staff can “encourage their coworkers to participate in religious expressions of faith, such as prayer.”
The Workplace of Personnel Administration labored with the White Home Religion Workplace to provide the memo, a spokesperson stated on the time, and it was despatched to heads of departments and businesses.
The White Home Religion Workplace was established in February as a part of the Home Coverage Council, with White appearing as a senior adviser.
Trump had directed the workplace to determine methods to scale back burdens on the free train of faith and to work with Lawyer Normal Pam Bondi, who was named the top of a process pressure to “eradicate anti-Christian bias.” Since then, Trump signed an govt order on anti-Christian bias, which goals to guard Christians from non secular discrimination.
Since his first time period in workplace, Trump has accused his political opponents of infringing on non secular liberty, accusing them of persecuting Christians. He referenced Monday that he pardoned anti-abortion activists former President Biden’s Division of Justice prosecuted for blocking entrances to abortion clinics.
He attacked Biden, who all through his presidency balanced his assist for abortion entry together with his Catholicism, of being “mean.”
“He’s a mean guy, actually. Not a smart guy, never was,” Trump stated. “What they did to people, what they did to J6 [the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol rioters], what they did to so many people, they were mean people. These were really radical, horrible people.”
The president spoke about curbing crime as a part of his work selling non secular expression, condemning the stabbing of a Ukrainian ladies in Charlotte, N.C., antisemitism on school campuses and the latest capturing at a Catholic college in Minneapolis.
“Our hearts are shattered for the families of those beautiful children,” the president stated of the capturing. “We must get answers about the causes of these repeated attacks.”
Trump has focused universities together with Harvard over what he deems inaction to guard Jewish college students, slicing off federal funding. He has additionally threatened to chop federal funding to California faculties in the event that they don’t comply together with his transgender insurance policies, because the state has refused to abide by the administration’s ban on transgender athletes on ladies sports activities groups.
Whereas taking over these fights, non secular leaders have typically visited the White Home.
Throughout faith-based occasions this yr, Trump shares a message that he’ll defend and shield the Judeo-Christian principals and heritage of the U.S.
“America was founded on faith, as we know, and I’ve been saying it for a long time: When faith gets weaker, our country seems to get weaker. When faith gets stronger, as it is right now … good things happen for our country. It’s amazing how it seems to work that way,” Trump stated Monday.
“Under the Trump administration, we’re defending our rights and restoring our identity as a nation under God. We are one nation under God, and we always will be.”
