US President Donald Trump criticised Washington Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde as “nasty” following her remarks during the presidential inaugural prayer service on Monday. Bishop Budde had appealed to Trump to show mercy towards gay, lesbian, and transgender children, and accused him of instilling fear in the hearts of immigrants and their families.
In response, Trump accused Bishop Budde of being a “Trump hater” and said she delivered her message with a “nasty” tone. On his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote, “The so-called Bishop who spoke at the National Prayer Service on Tuesday morning was a Radical Left hard line Trump hater. She brought her church into the World of politics in a very ungracious way. She was nasty in tone, and not compelling or smart.”
During her sermon, Bishop Budde emphasised that most immigrants are “not criminals,” to which Trump responded by highlighting the number of illegal immigrants involved in crimes. He stated, “She failed to mention the large number of illegal migrants that came into our Country and killed people. Many were deposited from jails and mental institutions. It is a giant crime wave that is taking place in the USA.”
Trump also criticised the prayer service itself, calling it “very boring and uninspiring.” “She is not very good at her job! She and her church owe the public an apology!” he said.
At the service, Bishop Budde had pleaded for mercy for marginalized groups, especially gay, lesbian, and transgender children, who she said were afraid for their lives. She described undocumented immigrants as “taxpayers” and “good neighbors,” and called for compassion, referencing the Bible’s teaching to be merciful to strangers.
“Our god teaches us that we are to be merciful to the stranger. For we were all once strangers in this land,” she said.
When asked for his opinion about the service, Trump dismissed it, saying, “Not too exciting, was it? I didn’t think it was a good service. No, they can do much better.”
During his inaugural speech, Trump had taken a strong stance against transgender issues and immigration. He declared, “As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female.”
He also promised to end policies aimed at socially engineering race and gender in every aspect of life, emphasising a “colorblind and merit-based” society, and announced measures to restrict immigration and end birthright citizenship.