The Right Reverend Mariann Budde plead with President Donald Trump to be kind towards communities in the United States who might be scared following his inauguration
The bishop who pleaded with Donald Trump to have mercy on LGBTQ+ communities and migrants during a prayer service has defended her comments.
With the newly-inaugurated president in attendance, the Right Reverend Mariann Budde gave a sermon focused on national unity on Tuesday.
At the end, Budde directly appealed to Trump to have mercy on LGBTQ+ people and undocumented migrant workers, saying: “You have felt the providential hand of a loving God. In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy on the people in our country who are scared now.”
Trump has since criticised Budde, labelling her “nasty” and a “Trump hater”.
However, in an interview with ITV News’ US partner CNN, Budde explained that she pleaded with the president because “people are frightened in our country”.
Speaking to ITV News’ US partner CNN, Budde said she pleaded with the president because ‘people are frightened in our country’
She said that LGBTQ+ communities and migrants had been portrayed in the “harshest of lights” throughout the political campaign.
“We don’t need to portray with a broad cloth, in the harshest of terms, some of the most vulnerable people in our society who are in fact our neighbours, our friends, our children, our friends, children and so forth.”
She continued: “I wanted to present a vision of what unity can look like in this country that is transcending of differences and viewpoints and acknowledging our common humanity.
“I wanted to speak in such a way that reflected that dignity and respect, but I also wanted to bring into that space the real humanity of the people that I was referencing.”
Budde said that Trump’s response was very “muted” which she wasn’t expecting, but added that other responses haven’t been as “kind”.
Trump reacts to the Right Reverend Mariann Budde pleading with him to have mercy on LGBTQ+ communities and migrants
Reacting to reporters, Trump said he “didn’t think it was a good service” and she could “do much better”.
Later on Tuesday, he said both Budde and the church owed the public an apology.
In a post on Truth Social, he 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.”
Republican Congressman Mike Collins has called for Budde to be “added to the deportation list”.
The sermon came the day after Trump was inaugurated for the second time and after he had already enacted a list of executive orders – including curtailing a series of protections around LGBTQ+ rights.
Trump said that only two sexes – male and female – will be recognised going forward, with the same order requiring the government to use the term “sex” rather than “gender”.
The Biden administration had made efforts to broaden gender identity designations, including on passports, where US citizens have been able to select “X” as their gender marker since 2022, but that has now been revoked.
Migrants were also targeted in Trump’s inaugural speech and subsequent executive orders.
The new president declared a “national emergency” at the Mexican border and immediately ended the use of an app that had allowed people to book appointments at legal crossing points before entering the United States, among other measures.
Reverend Budde has criticised Trump before, rebuking his “racialised rhetoric” and blaming him for inciting violence on January 6, 2020.
She was “outraged” in 2020 after Trump staged an appearance in front of her church, St. John’s Episcopal Church, without advance notice to share “a message antithetical to the teachings of Jesus”.
Peaceful protesters just outside the White House gates five years ago were dispersed with tear gas, flash grenades and rubber bullets, all reportedly so that Trump could visit the church.
Follow STV News on WhatsApp
Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
