Trump Delivers
Remarks at White House Following His
Acquittal in Impeachment Trial
Watch
President Donald Trump
blasted "dishonest and corrupt" people Thursday
morning at the National Prayer Breakfast, bashing
his impeachment before the nonpartisan event with
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi just steps away.
FULL REMARKS BY PRESIDENT
TRUMP AT THE 68TH NATIONAL PRAYER BREAKFAST
Washington Hilton
Washington, D.C.
February 06, 2020 - 9:11 A.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Well, thank you
very much. I'm working very hard for you, I will
tell you. (Laughter.) And sometimes you don't make
it easy, and I certainly don't make it easy on you.
(Laughter.) And I will continue that tradition, if
I might, this morning. And, Arthur, I don't know if
I agree with you. (Laughter.) But I don't know if
Arthur is going to like what I'm going to say.
(Laughter.) But I love listening to you. It's
really great. Thank you very much.
And thank you, congressmen, for the great job
you've been doing and the relationship and the
help. You're a warrior. Thank you very much. And,
Kevin, you're a warrior. Thank you. The job you've
done is incredible. It wasn't supposed to be that
way. A lot of extra work. Unnecessary work.
It's wonderful to be with the thousands of
religious believers for the 68th annual National
Prayer Breakfast. I've been here from the first
one, where I had the privilege of being asked. I've
been with you for a long time before then. And
we've made tremendous progress. Tremendous
progress. You know what we've done. I don't think
anybody has done more than all of us together during
these last three years. And it's been my honor.
But this morning, we come together as one
nation, blessed to live in freedom and grateful to
worship in peace. As everybody knows, my family,
our great country, and your President, have been put
through a terrible ordeal by some very dishonest and
corrupt people. They have done everything possible
to destroy us, and by so doing, very badly hurt our
nation. They know what they are doing is wrong, but
they put themselves far ahead of our great country.
Weeks ago, and again yesterday, courageous
Republican politicians and leaders had the wisdom,
the fortitude, and strength to do what everyone
knows was right. I don't like people who use their
faith as justification for doing what they know is
wrong. Nor do I like people who say, "I pray for
you," when they know that that's not so.
So many people have been hurt, and we can't let
that go on. And I'll be discussing that a little
bit later at the White House.
We're joined today by two people whose faith
inspires us all: our amazing, wonderful friend, Vice
President Mike Pence -- (applause) -- and his
wonderful wife, Karen. (Applause.) Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you to all of our great political leaders
out there -- so many that I've been working with so
hard over the last three years. And we've
accomplished so much. And to members of my Cabinet
in attendance -- Secretary Mike Pompeo, Mark Esper,
David Bernhardt -- (applause) -- Gene Scalia, Alex
Azar, Ben Carson, Dan Brouillette, Betsy DeVos,
Robert Wilke, and Administrator Jovita Carranza.
Joining us -- (applause) -- for this cherished
tradition are a lot of friends in the audience. And
many, really, have become friends. They are
political leaders. They've become great friends.
That's all I get to meet anymore. (Laughter.) That
and the enemies and the allies. And we have them
all. We have allies. We have enemies. Sometimes
the allies are enemies, but we just don't know it.
(Laughter.) But we're changing all that. But thank
you all, and thank you all for being here.
I also want to welcome foreign dignitaries from
more than 140 countries. That's something.
(Applause.) That's something. Everyone here today
is united by a shared conviction. We know that our
nation is stronger, our future is brighter, and our
joy is greater when we turn to God and ask him to
shed his grace on our lives.
On Tuesday, I addressed Congress on the state
of the Union and the great American comeback.
That's what it is. (Applause.) Our country has
never done better than it is doing right now. Our
economy is the strongest it has ever been. And for
those of you that are interested in stocks, it looks
like the stock market will be way up again today.
According to the latest Gallup poll that just
came out a little while ago, a few minutes ago,
American satisfaction is at the highest level ever
recorded. Can you imagine? And that's from Gallup
-- no friend of mine. (Applause.) Ninety percent
of Americans say they are satisfied with their
personal lives. How about that? Isn't that
something? Just came out today. (Applause.) They
must have known I was going to be here. (Laughter.)
In everything we do, we are creating a culture
that protects freedom, and that includes religious
freedom. (Applause.)
As I said on Tuesday in the House Chamber, "In
America, we don't punish prayer. We don't tear down
crosses. We don't ban symbols of faith. We don't
muzzle preachers." We don't muzzle pastors. "In
America, we celebrate faith, we cherish religion, we
lift our voices in prayer, and we raise our sights
to the Glory of God." (Applause.)
So much of the greatness we have achieved, the
mysteries we've unlocked, and the wonders we've
built, the challenges we've met, and the incredible
heights that we've reached has come from the faith
of our families and the prayers of our people.
Before America declared independence, patriots
in all 13 colonies came together in days of fasting
and prayer. In the bitter cold of Valley Forge,
Washington and his men had no food, no supplies, and
very little chance of victory. It reminded me a
little bit of 2016. We had very little chance of
victory. (Laughter.) Except for the people in this
room and some others believed we were going to win.
I believed we were going to win. But what they did
have was have an unwavering belief that God was with
them. I believe that too. God is with the people in
this room.
Before a single skyscraper rose up in New York
City, thousands of poor American families donated
all they could to build the magnificent St.
Patrick's Cathedral. (Applause.)
When Buzz Aldrin landed on the Moon, he said,
"Houston, I would like to request a few moments of
silence." Then, he read from the Bible.
(Applause.)
At every stage, our nation's long march for
civil rights was inspired, sustained, and uplifted
by faith, prayer, and devotion of religious
believers.
To protect faith communities, I have taken
historic action to defend religious liberty,
including the constitutional right to pray in public
schools. (Applause.)
We can also talk about the Johnson Amendment.
We can talk about Mexico City Policy. We've done a
lot. But I also recently took executive action to
stop taxpayer dollars from going to colleges and
universities that spread the poison of anti-Semitism
and bad things about Christianity. (Applause.)
We are upholding the sanctity of life --
sanctity of life. (Applause.) And we are doing
that like nobody has ever done it before from this
position. You better get out and vote on November
3rd -- (laughter) -- because you have a lot of
people out there that aren't liking what we're
doing.
And we're pursuing medical breakthroughs to
save premature babies because every child is a
sacred gift from God. (Applause.)
Together, we are building the world's most
prosperous and inclusive society. We are lifting up
citizens of every race, color, religion, and creed.
We are bringing hope to forgotten communities. And
more Americans are working today -- 160 million. A
little bit short. Just a little bit. One hundred
and sixty million. We've never been even close --
than ever before. Think of it: More Americans are
working today -- almost 160 million -- than ever
before. Our unemployment numbers are the best in
the history of our country. (Applause.)
A more specific number and numbers that you
hear me say, if you listen: African American, Asian
American, Hispanic American -- the best unemployment
numbers in the history of our country. Women --
best in 71 years. Sorry. We'll have you there
soon. Soon, it will be "historic." I have to
apologize to the women; it's only 71 years.
But the best unemployment numbers, we have --
we're doing things that nobody thought possible.
We're setting records that nobody thought
achievable.
And to give former prisoners a second chance at
life, which so many people in this room have worked
on for so long -- (applause) -- we passed criminal
justice reform into law, and I signed it nine months
ago.
And it's proving more and more that America is
indeed a nation that believes in redemption. What's
happened with prisoners is a miracle. Prisoners
would come out and nobody would give them a job.
And oftentimes, most of the time -- almost all of
the time -- they'd go back into prison. They'd get
caught doing something bad. They had no money.
They had no hope. They had no job. Now they're
coming out into a booming economy. And employers
are hiring them, and to a certain extent, maybe
because they're having a hard time getting people.
First time in our country's history, actually,
we're running out of people. We have plants moving
in by the thousands. We have car companies coming
from Japan and from Germany, from lots of other
places, and we need people. And employers are
hiring prisoners, and they would have never done it,
except for what we've done with criminal justice
reform. But even before that, because the economy
has become so powerful.
And these prisoners have done an incredible
job. The employers are saying, "Why didn't I do
this 20 years ago?"
So it's an incredible thing what's happening to
people that are given a second chance, and sometimes
a third chance, in all fairness. And it's something
that everybody in this room should be very proud
about, because you've always felt that way long
before it was fashionable. So I want to thank you
for that. (Applause.)
As we revive our economy, we are also renewing
our national spirit. Today we proudly proclaim that
faith is alive and well and thriving in America.
And we're going to keep it that way. Nobody will
have it changed. (Applause.) It won't happen. As
long as I'm here, it will never, ever happen.
(Applause.)
Something which wasn't done nearly enough -- I
could almost say wasn't done at all -- we are
standing up for persecuted Christians and religious
minorities all around the world -- (applause) --
like nobody has ever done.
Last year, at the United Nations, I was honored
to be the first President to host a meeting of
religious freedom. It was based all on religious
freedom. That was the first meeting of its kind
ever held at the United Nations. There I called
upon all nations to combat the terrible injustice of
religious persecution. And people listened.
And countries that we give billions of dollars
to, they listened because they had to listen.
(Laughter.) It's amazing how that works, isn't it?
(Laughter.) That nobody ever played that game
before. (Laughter.)
Weeks ago, a 21-year-old woman, who goes by the
name of Mary, was seized and imprisoned in Iran
because she converted to Christianity and shared the
Gospel with others.
In Venezuela, the dictator Maduro has arrested
church leaders. At the State of the Union, I was
honored to host the true and legitimate President of
Venezuela, Juan Guaidó. (Applause.) Good man. I
told him that all Americans stand with the
Venezuelan people in their righteous struggle for
freedom.
Yesterday, our administration launched the
International Religious Freedom Alliance, the
first-ever alliance devoted to promoting religious
liberty. It was something. Really something.
(Applause.)
More than 25 countries have already joined our
campaign. I want to thank Secretary of State Mike
Pompeo, along with Ambassador Sam Brownback, who are
both here this morning, for leading this historic
initiative. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mike.
(Applause.) Thank you.
All of us here today reaffirm these timeless
truths: Faith keeps us free. Prayer makes us
strong. And God alone is the author of life and the
giver of grace. (Applause.)
With us this morning is a pastor who embodies
the miracle of faith and the power of prayer:
Reverend Gerald Toussaint from Louisiana. Reverend
Toussaint is an Army veteran, a truck driver, and a
pastor. He leads the same church that his father
led, Mount Pleasant Baptist Church, which has been a
pillar of the community for more than 140 years.
Last year, Mount Pleasant was one of three African
American churches in Louisiana that was destroyed in
a fire set by a wicked, hate-filled arsonist.
Yet, in the wake of such shocking evil, America
witnessed the unshakable unity, devotion, and spirit
of Reverend Toussaint and his entire highly
spirited, beautiful congregation. Families quickly
came together in prayer. Soon, people from all
across Louisiana came to help any way they could.
Americans in all 50 states and 20 different
countries heard about it and they donated more than
$2 million to help rebuild Mount Pleasant --
(applause) -- and the other two churches that were
(inaudible).
On Easter Sunday, just days after he lost his
church, Reverend Toussaint preached about what it
all meant. What does it mean? "The Easter season,"
he said, "is a fitting metaphor for recent events.
It was dark the day that Jesus was crucified. It
was dark [at] night when they burned our church.
What has happened since is like a resurrection."
Old things are gone, but it's going to be a
brand-new start, and it's going to be better than
ever, Reverend. (Applause.) Better than ever.
Fantastic.
And today, just 10 months later, the ground is
cleared. Careful plans have been made, and they're
beautiful plans. And construction is about to begin
on the new and very, very magnificent Mount Pleasant
Church. Congratulations. (Applause.)
You know, the Reverend says that we're
rebuilding because that's what Jesus does. He
rebuilds, he lives, and he breathes. It's what he
does. He wants it to be rebuilt. It was torn
apart, but it's being rebuilt again, and I'll bet
you it will indeed be bigger, better, and nicer than
before. What do you think, Reverend? Yes? And
it's going to have your mark on it. It did have and
now it will have even great. And your father is
looking down on you right now and he's very, very
proud of the job that you've done. Thank you very
much. (Applause.) Very much inspire us, Reverend.
Thank you.
Well, I want to just thank everybody. This has
been very special. Tell your congregation that --
and all of your people -- that we have 350 million
people in our country. They're proud Americans.
And they respect what we're doing, even those that
you don't think so much like us, respect us, want to
be with us. They're respecting our fight, and we
are in a fight.
Religion in this country and religion all over
the world -- certain religions in particular -- are
under siege. We won't let that happen. We are
going to protect our religions. We are going to
protect Christianity. We are going to protect our
great ministers and pastors and rabbis and all of
the people that we so cherish and that we so
respect.
America is eternally in the debt of our
nation's African American churches all throughout
this country. That's why it's so fitting and so --
it's one of the reasons we chose this particular
church in Louisiana. For generations, they bravely
fought for justice and lifted up the conscience of
our nation. And we're grateful beyond any measure.
But I can say that going beyond that, we're
grateful to the people in this room for the love
they show to religion. Not one religion, but many
religions. They are brave. They are brilliant.
They are fighters. They like people. And sometimes
they hate people. I'm sorry. I apologize. I'm
trying to learn. (Laughter.) It's not easy. It's
not easy. (Applause.)
When they impeach you for nothing, then you're
supposed to like them? It's not easy, folks.
(Laughter.) I do my best.
But I'll tell you what we are doing: We're
restoring hope and spreading faith. We're helping
citizens of every background take part in the great
rebuilding of our nation. We're declaring that
America will always shine as a land of liberty and
light unto all nations of the world. We want every
nation to look up to us like they are right now. We
were not a respected nation just a few years ago.
We had lost our way. Our country is respected again
by everybody. (Applause.)
This morning, let us ask Father in Heaven to
guide our steps, protect our children, and bless our
families. And with all of our heart, let us forever
embrace the eternal truth that every child is made
equal by the hand of Almighty God.
Thank you. God Bless you. And God bless
America. Thank you all very much. Thank you.
Thank you. (Applause.)
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