New president furious over prayer service appeal for compassion and tells government departments to prepare to dismiss employees hired under diversity initiatives

President Donald Trump, left, watches as Rev. Mariann Budde, second right, arrives at the national prayer service at the Washington National Cathedral, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) President Donald Trump,

Donald Trump reacts to Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde's sermon, calling it 'nasty' amid ongoing debates on LGBTQ+ rights and immigration policies.- Watch Video on English Oneindia

Trump rolled out a blueprint to beef up security at the southern border in a series of executive orders that began taking effect soon after his inauguration Monday, making good on his defining political promise to crack down on immigration and marking another wild swing in White House policy on the divisive issue.

Rep. Mike Collins heavily criticized statements made by the Right Rev. Mariann Budde on Tuesday at the inaugural prayer service held for President Trump.

NPR's Juana Summers speaks with Bishop Mariann Budde about her homily Tuesday, where she made a plea directly to President Donald Trump.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday demanded an apology from the Episcopal bishop of Washington after she made a direct appeal to him during a prayer service marking his inauguration to have mercy on the LGBTQ+ community and migrant workers who are in the United States illegally.

Bishop Mariann Budde led a service on Trump’s second day in office and told him people feared his executive order. He said her sermon was “not too exciting”.

President Donald Trump took to Truth Social early Wednesday to slam the Right Rev. Mariann Budde, the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, for her plea during Tuesday’s inaugural prayer service that he “have mercy” on communities in fear.

Donald Trump has said that he would be open to his billionaire ally Elon Musk or Oracle boss Larry Ellison buying the US arm of Chinese social video app TikTok from parent company ByteDance after granting it a 75-day reprieve on being banned in the US.

On Fox News last night, Trump cheerleaders Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham likewise attacked the bishop for issuing a “woke tirade” and forcing the president and his entourage to listen to the “rantings of a lunatic”.