Trump faith adviser: ‘I wish I wouldn’t have said’ God ‘lifted up’ Trump
President Trump’s top spiritual adviser Paula White said Saturday that she regretted saying that God “lifted up” Trump in his 2016 election victory over Hillary Clinton.
The megachurch pastor told reporters at the Religion News Association conference in Nashville Saturday that she was feeling “fired up” when she made the comments on the Jim Bakker Show earlier this year.
“Thanks for bringing up the elephant” in the room, White said to laughs.
“I’m a preacher, and I got a little fired up,” she said. “And I said some things invariably I wish I would not have said. Some things that could most definitely and have been taken out of context.
“Do I believe that God raises up authority, do I believe that he sets one up and pulls one down? When I read from Genesis to Revelation, I do believe that,” she said. “So I don’t believe that just for President Trump, I believe that for President Obama. I believe that, had Hillary been in [the White House] — yes, I believe that authority is raised up by God.”
{mosads}White said her comments stemmed from her belief that authority on Earth is judged and “raised” by God.
“If I believe authority is raised by God — I understand I don’t understand all things. And what those purposes are. He’s a sovereign God,” White said.
She also addressed her remarks that appeared to say those who opposed Trump were “fighting against the hand of God.”
“I was talking about the different kinds of prayer,” she explained. “In life, even in our own personal life, we find our self at times fighting against the hand of God. And I believe that. In other words, we can be a rebellious and stubborn people, individually, nationally or corporately. So in context, the headlines were quite different than what was really being said.”
White is one of a few dozen evangelical faith leaders who regularly meet with the president. According to statements she made Saturday, she’s been a friend and counselor to Trump for more than 16 years.
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