Bishop Mariann Budde
Washington, D.C. — Former President Donald Trump fired back at Bishop Mariann Budde of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington after her sermon at the National Prayer Service on Tuesday. The newly inaugurated president took to Truth Social to criticize Budde’s remarks, calling her “nasty” and accusing her of bringing politics into the church.
Budde’s sermon, delivered at Washington’s National Cathedral, urged Trump and other national leaders to show compassion toward marginalized groups, including immigrants and the LGBTQ+ community. “I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now,” she said. “There are gay, lesbian, and transgender people in Democratic, Republican, and independent families, some who fear for their lives … and the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals.”
The comments drew a swift and pointed response from Trump, who described Budde as a “Radical Left hard line Trump hater” in a lengthy post on Truth Social. “She brought her church into the world of politics in a very ungracious way,” Trump wrote. “She was nasty in tone, and not compelling or smart.”
Trump also doubled down on claims he made during his 2024 campaign, asserting that “illegal migrants” had caused a “giant crime wave” in the U.S. He criticized Budde’s sermon as “very boring” and “uninspiring” before concluding that she and her church “owe the public an apology.”
Budde’s sermon, which was attended by newly sworn-in U.S. leaders, also included a call for national unity. “I ask you to pray for unity as a people and a nation — not for agreement, political or otherwise — but for the kind of unity that fosters community across diversity and division,” she said.
While Trump and First Lady Melania Trump remained stoic during the sermon, Vice President J.D. Vance was seen glancing at his wife with an expression of apparent frustration. After the service, Trump told reporters, “Not too exciting, was it? I didn’t think it was a very good service, no. They could do much better.”
Bishop Budde, who has been a vocal critic of Trump in the past, previously condemned him for his response to the January 6 Capitol riots, as well as for a controversial photo op at St. John’s Episcopal Church during the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests. In her 2021 remarks, she declared, “There is nothing Christian about what we are witnessing today. Nothing.”
Trump’s recent comments are likely to intensify the long-standing tensions between him and faith leaders critical of his policies and rhetoric. Despite the controversy, Budde’s call for inclusivity and unity was well-received by many of her supporters, who praised her for speaking truth to power.