The Bishop of Washington has defended her comments after she used her platform to make an emotive plea to President Donald Trump at his inauguration.
Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde gave a 15-minute long sermon on Monday (January 20), as the Republican was sworn-in to power once again – and for just over a minute of that she pleaded with the 78-year-old to ‘have mercy’ on the LGBTQ+ community.
Now, the bishop has insisted she won’t apologize to the president but that she does pray for him.
Speaking during the sermon, Right Rev. Budde said: “Mr President, millions have put their trust in you. And as you told the nation yesterday, you have felt the providential hand of a loving God.
“In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now. There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican and Independent families, some who fear for their lives.
Right Rev. Budde issued a ‘plea’ to the president (CBS News)
“And the people, the people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings, who labour in poultry farms and meat packing plants, who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shifts in hospitals – they may not be citizens or have the proper documentation, but the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals.”
Trump hit back at her after the service, branding it ‘not too exciting’ and that he ‘didn’t think it was a good service,’ concluding: “They could do much better.”
He also took to his social media platform Truth Social to slam Budde, even calling for her and the church to apologize to the ‘public’.
Following the backlash, Budde was invited on to NPR (National Public Radio) to discuss the incident.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order to state there are only two recognized genders in the US (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
“I don’t hate the president, and I pray for him,” the bishop said. “I don’t feel there’s a need to apologize for a request for mercy.”
“I regret that it was something that has caused the kind of response that it has, in the sense that it actually confirmed the very thing that I was speaking of earlier, which is our tendency to jump to outrage and not speak to one another with respect,” she continued. “But no, I won’t, I won’t apologize for what I said.”
Within just his first 24 hours in the Oval Office, Trump signed off a number of executive orders, including a policy stating there are ‘only two genders’ alongside many orders blocking migrants from being able to enter the US.
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Joe Yates
Impact on oath after Donald Trump didn’t put hand on Bible while being sworn in
The president didn’t touch either of the two Bibles presented before him while he took his oath
People have been wondering if Donald Trump’s decision not to put his hand on the Bible while being sworn in has had any impact on his oath of office.
Yesterday (January 20) marked a historical day for the White House as Donald Trump returned to office for the second time, becoming the 47th President of the United States.
The inauguration ceremony in Washington has already caused a stir on social media, as eagle-eyed viewers didn’t skip a beat spotting some seemingly strange moments.
From First Lady Melania Trump‘s excessively large hat which allowed her to ‘dodge’ a kiss from the president to Elon Musk’s thumbs up next to Barron Trump before later being accused of making a ‘Nazi salute’ – something he has denied.
Now, another snippet from the ceremony has gone viral where Trump is being sworn in during his oath of office.
Donald Trump didn’t put hand on Bible during oath
The tradition of swearing on a Bible dates back to George Washington, who actually kissed the scriptures after taking his oath, but as Trump raised his right hand to ‘solemnly swear’ to commit to the position and ‘serve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States’, his left hand strayed away from hovering over the two Bibles his wife held in front of him.
He had a family Bible, given to Trump by his mother, and a Bible used by the 16th President Abraham Lincoln used in his own inauguration in 1861. But apparently, Trump didn’t touch either of them, despite doing so in his first inauguration in 2017.
Many have since been left wondering if Trump’s choice not to touch the holy texts has had any impact on his oath and how the Bible actually factors into the whole affair.
Donald Trump didn’t touch the Bibles next to him while making his oath (MORRY GASH/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Taking to Twitter, an apparent Trump supporter wrote: “Great. Just great. No hand on the Bible.
“Melania tried to get it close to him but Roberts and Trump didn’t notice.
“Now we get four more years of people saying he’s not president, and four more years of people saying he’s the AntiChrist.”
It’s not clear why Trump decided not to put his hand on the Bible.
Does Trump not putting his hand on the Bible have an impact on oath?
Physically touching a Bible is not actually mandatory or a legal requirement – the Constitution simply requires the president take the oath before assuming office, religious text or not.
Speaking to Reuters, Jeremi Suri, a University of Texas history professor and presidential scholar, revealed there is no practical impact if a president declines to swear on a Bible or historical document.
Suri said: “There’s nothing in the Constitution that says the president has to connect this to God in any way. The oath is to the Constitution.
“I don’t think it has any bearing on him taking the oath.”
Trump and his wife, Melania, during his swearing in in the US Capitol on Monday (Julia Demaree Nikhinson – Pool/Getty Images)
The academic also added that the Constitution allows any incoming president to either swear or attest, meaning it is ‘open to someone who is an atheist’.
Long-standing tradition
But that hasn’t stopped Trump’s predecessors from following the tradition to a tee, including Joe Biden, who used a Bible that had been in his family since 1893.
In some instances where the Bible was not used, US presidents used other texts: John Quincy Adams, the sixth president, placed his hand on a book of law, while Lyndon B. Johnson used a Catholic prayer missal that was found on the plane that transported John F. Kennedy’s casket after his assassination, reports The New York Times.
Trump has also referenced God during his inaugural address, commenting that he was ‘saved by God’ to ‘make American great again‘.
UNILAD has contacted the White House press secretary for comment.
All the executive orders Donald Trump has signed so far
Policy recognising only ‘two genders’
The president signed an order which will make it an official policy that there are only ‘two genders’.
The policy reads: “Agencies will cease pretending that men can be women and women can be men when enforcing laws that protect against sex discrimination.
“These sexes are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality.”
The order will also bring to an end ‘wasteful’ government programmes which promote diversity and inclusivity, as well as ‘defending women from gender ideology extremism’.
Free speech
The president accused the previous administration of ‘trampling free speech rights by censoring Americans’ speech’ and vowed to restore freedom of speech.
The order states it will ‘ensure that no Federal Government officer, employee, or agent engages in or facilitates any conduct that would unconstitutionally abridge the free speech of any American citizen’ and will ‘end censorship of protected speech’.
Leaving the World Health Organisation
The president accused the organization of fumbling the COVID-19 pandemic and said the US would no longer be ‘ripped off’ by it.
While signing a document to have the US leave the health agency, Trump said: “World Health ripped us off, everybody rips off the United States. It’s not going to happen anymore.”
TikTok ban
As expected, Trump signed an executive order which hits pause on the US’ ban of the popular app, allowing time for an ‘appropriate course forward’.
“I guess I have a warm spot for TikTok that I didn’t have originally,” he said.
January 6 pardons
Trump’s loss in the 2020 election led to the insurrection at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, in turn resulting in the arrests of a number of Trump supporters.
And as anticipated, the president has wasted no time in issuing pardons for offenders. Trump said he’s pardoned around 1,500 people and issued six commutations.
Immigration
Trump has issued a slew of immigration-related policies during his first day back in the White House as he declared illegal immigration at the US-Mexico border a national emergency.
Trump has already gotten started on reversing several Biden-era immigration orders and has plans to send US troops to help immigration agents and restrict refugees.
The president has also got the wheels in motion to prevent children of immigrants in the US illegally from having citizenship.
Speaking at his inauguration, he said: “All illegal entry will immediately be halted, and we will begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the places from which they came.”
Restoring the death penalty
Calling capital punishment an ‘essential tool for deterring and punishing those who would commit the most heinous crimes’, Trump signed an order which will ensure states have enough lethal injection drugs for executions.
“The Attorney General shall pursue the death penalty for all crimes of a severity demanding its use,” the order says.
Renaming the Gulf of Mexico
Following through on his promise during a press conference earlier this month, Trump has now ordered the Gulf of Mexico to be called the Gulf of America.
“President Trump is bringing common sense to government and renewing the pillars of American Civilization,” the executive order said.
Despite the order, it won’t change how it is named globally.
Energy policy
Trump has vowed to ‘unleash American energy’, promising to export US energy globally as he signed the order amid what he describes as a ‘national energy emergency’.
“America is blessed with an abundance of energy and natural resources that have historically powered our Nation’s economic prosperity. In recent years, burdensome and ideologically motivated regulations have impeded the development of these resources, limited the generation of reliable and affordable electricity, reduced job creation, and inflicted high energy costs upon our citizens,” the order states.
The order will also reverse Biden’s ban on drilling in Alaska as Trump declared America ‘will be a rich nation again’.
Cost of living
In the order, Trump vowed to issue ’emergency price relief’ to Americans aimed at lowering housing prices and availability and creating ’employment opportunities for American workers’.
Trump will also ‘eliminate harmful, coercive “climate” policies that increase the costs of food and fuel’.
Drug cartels
Trump has said drug cartels will now be classified as terrorist organisations.
“International cartels constitute a national-security threat beyond that posed by traditional organised crime,” the orders says.
Federal workers
Federal employees have now been classified as political hires – a move which in theory would make them easier to fire.
Trump also declared a federal hiring freeze which will reduce the size of federal government.
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Topics: Donald Trump, Elon Musk, Melania Trump, Politics, Religion, US News
Liv Bridge
Reason why you might be automatically following Donald Trump and JD Vance on Instagram without choosing to
There is a rather simple explanation for it
With Donald Trump back in the White House, some social media users have been left curious about why they’re now following the new president and vice president on Instagram.
Now to be clear, this isn’t people who started following Donald Trump and JD Vance and then forgot about it.
Multiple users on Instagram have claimed that they never went to either one of their pages but are now – for some reason – getting updates about them on their feeds.
Some even claimed to have unfollowed the politicians multiple times.
As you can imagine this has sparked a few odd theories but the explanation is pretty straightforward and considerably less exciting.
People have been surprised to find themselves following Donald Trump (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Why am I automatically following Donald Trump and JD Vance on Instagram?
Meta, who owns Instagram, spokesman Andy Stone explained what was going on in hopes of quelling the fears of those affected.
Writing on Threads, he said: “A reminder: the Facebook.com/POTUS and Facebook.com/White… accounts are managed by the White House. They change when the occupant of the White House changes.”
It’s worth noting that this also applies to the first lady and vice president accounts.
So when Trump took office on January 20, the Facebook and Instagram accounts of now-former President Joe Biden were archived.
For example, Biden’s Instagram account is now @potus46archive, while Trump’s official White House account is @potus.
Biden’s account still has its followers but they were also transferred to the new @potus account.
On Facebook, Biden’s archived page is called ‘President Joe Biden Archived’ and has 11 million followers. While Trump’s official page is named ‘President Donald J. Trump’ and also has 11 million followers.
Meta executives explained what has happened (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Facebook’s former director of public policy for global elections, Katie Harbath, said this wasn’t anything particularly new and explained how transfers to new administrations worked in 2016 and 2021.
In her own Thread post, she commented: “Just to back up what Andy is saying, my team set up the first ways of having to do this when Trump won in 2016 and we had to transfer the official accounts that President Obama’s team created when Facebook pages were first created.
“Same was done during the transfer from Trump to Biden. The old ones go to an archived account and the followers remain, but the feed is wiped clean. Most platforms handle it this way.”
Thankfully, if you don’t want to follow Trump or Vance then the process of unfollowing or blocking them remains exactly the same – simply click the three dots for the ‘unfollow’ and ‘block’ options.
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Gerrard Kaonga
Everything Donald Trump has promised to do as he is sworn in as president again
Trump has made some bold declarations
As Donald Trump prepares to be inaugurated to the White House a second time, we take a look at all changes he’s vowed to usher in.
The Republican Party leader is set to officially become the 47th US President, as he’s sworn into office in Washington DC later from 11.30am Eastern Time today (20 January).
From cryptocurrency to education and everything in between, here’s everything Donald Trump has promised to do as he returns to office…
Be a ‘dictator’
Donald Trump is the 47th President of the United States (Photo by Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Trump admitted that one of his plans for his first day back in the Oval Office would be to be a ‘dictator’ when discussing the possibility of his win in an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity last year.
He referred to himself as a ‘dictator’ during the interview, when asked by Hannity if he was promising to ‘never abuse power as retribution against anybody’.
In response, Trump said: “Except for Day 1.
“I want to close the border and I want to drill, drill, drill. We’re closing the border and we’re drilling, drilling, drilling,” he continued.
“After that, I’m not a dictator.”
Delay the TikTok ban
The TikTok ban has been delayed (TikTok/ Twitter/ @amyewong)
TikTok went dark yesterday (January 19), but it was bought back after mere hours with a message reading: “Welcome back! Thank you for your patience and support. As a result of President Trump’s efforts, TikTok is back in the US!
“You can continue to create, share and discover all the things you love on TikTok.”
Trump will reportedly sign an executive order to delay the ban saying he wants to ‘make a deal to protect our national security.’
Scrap ‘electric vehicle mandates’
Trump has vowed to scrap EV mandates (Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)
Trump plans to scrap Biden administration’s so-called electric vehicle mandate, referring to new pollution standards that incentivize auto manufacturers to increase production of electric and lower-emission vehicles.
Despite vowing to get rid of the policy on his first day, Trump told podcaster Joe Rogan the move could take ‘maybe two days, because it’s a little bit busy’.
Make US ‘crypto capital’
My NEW Official Trump Meme is HERE! It’s time to celebrate everything we stand for: WINNING! Join my very special Trump Community. GET YOUR $TRUMP NOW. Go to gettrumpmemes.com — Have Fun!
Back in 2021, Trump called crypto a ‘scam against the dollar.’ But four years on, he’s pulled a u-turn as he vowed to make the US the ‘crypto capital of the planet’.
On social media, Trump claimed crypto would be ‘mined, minted and made in the US’.
Both he and wife Melania released their own memecoins ahead of the inauguration, while experts previously predicted Bitcoin could reach up to $250,000 this year.
Trump also said he would ‘fire’ Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler ‘on day one’ – referencing the Joe Biden-appointed SEC chairman who has taken an aggressive approach to crypto regulation.
Free some of the January 6 rioters
Trump supporters clashed with police and security forces as they stormed the US Capitol in Washington, DC on January 6, 2021 (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
It was Trump’s loss in the 2020 election that led to the insurrection at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, resulting in the arrests of a number of Trump supporters.
However, the president-elect told reporters on voting day this year that his supporters are ‘not violent people’, and that there would be ‘no violence’ surrounding the most recent election.
This belief echoes Trump’s previous claim that some of the people sentenced for their role in the insurrection were ‘wrongfully imprisoned’, and explains why he has shared plans to free them of their sentences as one of his first acts when he returns as president.
In a post shared on his social media channel, Trump said: “I am inclined to pardon many of them. I can’t say for every single one, because a couple of them, probably they got out of control.”
End Green Deals
Five years after introducing the Green New Deal, we’ve helped secure the largest US investment to combat the climate crisis, launched the American Climate Corps, and more. And we’re just getting started.
Trump has spoken previously about his plan to ‘terminate the Green New Deal’, which he dubbed the ‘Green New Scam’.
The Green New Deal was pitched by Democrats Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Ed Markey, but it was never signed into law. However, Trump has used the term to refer more generally to Joe Biden’s climate and energy policies.
Addressing the policies in a speech in September, Trump said: “To further defeat inflation, my plan will terminate the Green New Deal, which I call the Green New Scam. Greatest scam in history, probably.
“We [will] rescind all unspent funds under the misnamed Inflation Reduction Act.
“I’m going to write it out in an executive order. It’s going to end on Day 1.”
Fire the man who indicted him
Trump faced two federal cases due to the insurrection (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)
Trump faced two federal cases in relation to the 2020 election result from special counsel Jack Smith, and the future POTUS has no plans to work with him again.
Speaking on October 24, Trump told the Hugh Hewitt show he would fire Smith ‘within two seconds’.
“He’ll be one of the first things addressed,” he said.
Plan over 100 executive orders
TRUMP WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING!
It’s been reported by AP that Trump plans on preparing over 100 executive orders on his first day in the White House.
Trump’s allies have reportedly spent time preparing documents that Trump can sign quickly, on issues such as deportation, school gender policies, and vaccine mandates, without input from congress.
“There will be a substantial number,” said Senator John Hoeven, R-N.D.
Make hidden government files public
Trump has promised to increase government transparency, including information about MLK’s assassination (Alpha Historica / Alamy Stock Photo)
Including the assassinations of JFK and Martin Luther King Jr., Trump promised at his recent rally in Washington D.C that, in a bid to increase government transparency, he will be making these disclosures in ‘the coming days’.
“And in the coming days, we are going to make public remaining records relating to the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, his brother Robert Kennedy, as well as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,” he said.
Mass deportations
Trump, his wife Melania and their son Barron (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
Making it clear this will be a priority from day one, Trump wants to start his second presidential reign by using the military to deport masses of undocumented immigrants.
In November 2024, Judicial Watch’s Tom Fitton put these claims to social media, to which Trump simply replied: “TRUE!”
In a lengthier statement during a rally at Madison Square Garden, he said: “On Day 1, I will launch the largest deportation program in American history to get the criminals out.
“I will rescue every city and town that has been invaded and conquered, and we will put these vicious and bloodthirsty criminals in jail, then kick them the hell out of our country as fast as possible.”
It’s thought the move will impact an estimated 11 million people.
Getting rid of birthright citizenship
Exactly as it sounds, Trump once declared he wanted to get rid of birthright citizenship, which immediately gives citizenship to anyone born in the US.
Noting that this may not be possible as it’s written into the constitution, he said he wants to achieve this by executive order – bypassing congress again – ‘if we can’.
Arrange green cards for college graduates
Despite making his stance on immigration clear, Trump has advocated for non-US citizens to receive green cards to stay in the country if they graduate from college.
During an episode of the ‘All In’ podcast recorded this year, Trump said: “Anybody graduates from a college, you go in there for two years or four years, if you graduate, or you get a doctorate degree from a college, you should be able to stay in this country […]
“Somebody graduates at the top of the class, they can’t even make a deal with the company because they don’t think they’re going to be able to stay in the country. That is going to end on Day 1.”
The ‘Make Greenland Great Again Act’
Trump has his sights set on Greenland (Juan Maria Coy Vergara/Getty Images)
In a bid that has not gone down well with Greenlanders – shocking – Trump has said he wants to buy Greenland, with Republican lawmakers having drawn up a bill which will allow Trump to start negotiations when he enters the White House January 20.
Taking to his social media platform Truth Social, he said: “For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.
“Greenland is an incredible place. The people will benefit tremendously if, and when, it becomes part of our Nation. We will protect it, cherish it, from a very vicious outside World.
“MAKE GREENLAND GREAT AGAIN!”
Cut federal funding for schools educating on ‘inappropriate’ topics
Speaking early last year, Trump addressed a crowd in Iowa and made plans to ‘save [the] country from destruction’.
As part of this, the president-elect shared his plans to crack down on schools which include certain lessons about race, gender or politics.
“On day one, I will sign a new executive order to cut federal funding for any school pushing critical race theory, transgender insanity,” he said, per NPR.
Trump also said he would target schools pushing ‘any other inappropriate racial, sexual or political content on our children’.
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I think the whole Tiktok thing was a ruse to gain supporters. What do Americans love right now? The Tiktok. Take it away briefly, give back making it look like he “saved” it, he’s the hero. Sad.
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INSANE!!!
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Topics: Donald Trump, US News, News, Politics
Ellie Kemp
Donald Trump makes bizarre admission about Melania’s feet after inauguration speech
Donald Trump commenting on wife Melania’s feet shortly after his inauguration speech certainly wasn’t on my Bingo card for 2025
Donald Trump delivered a second speech and made a comment about wife Melania’s feet which he admitted he was probably ‘going to get hell’ for.
Yesterday (January 20), Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States, delivering his inaugural speech in the Capitol Rotunda in Washington, DC.
Shortly after his inauguration, the 78-year-old delivered a second speech during which he not only thanked his wife, Melania, but also gave a very public shout out to her feet, no less.
Delivering remarks in the emancipation hall shortly after giving his inaugural speech, Trump thanked the crowds but took a moment to praise ‘a First Lady who has been incredible’.
He said: “I shouldn’t say this, I’m going to get hell when I say this, but her feet hurt. Absolutely aching. You know, those heels.
“And we thought we were leaving, we were going home. ‘Sir would you be able to go down and say hello to some of your other fans?’ And I said, ‘Oh, I didn’t know that’.”
Trump went on to say Melania told him she ‘loves [him] so much’ but her feet were ‘hurting,’ the president then checking how far they’d have to walk.
#prayformelaniasfeet? (CBS News)
“Maybe 400 or 500 yards – that’s five football fields,” he continued. “I said, ‘Can you make it?’ She said, ‘We’re going to make it no matter what. We’re going to make it because we have to’.”
Trump explained the pair then went to the helicopter and said bye, with Melania’s fashion troubles not ending there either with her hat nearly ‘blowing away’ too.
And it’s not taken long for viewers to flock to social media to weigh in.
One Twitter user said: “TRUMP IS TALKING ABOUT MELANIA’S FEET. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.”
“When he said ‘I’m gonna get hell for saying this, but her feet are absolutely…’ with that pause, I genuinely thought he was about to go down that road,” another added.
A third commented: “Oh bring her some crocs! I get sore feet too!”
And it’s not the only rogue moment you may’ve missed if you tuned into Trump’s inauguration day – there were eight ‘uncomfortable’ interactions during the event.
A failed kiss, billionaires on the front row and Kamala Harris and Joe Biden too – oh and Hillary Clinton certainly didn’t hold back either.
