The star guest for the Wednesday episode of ABC’s The View was Episcopal “bishop” Mariann Edgar Budde, the same sermon leader who tried to troll President Trump the previous day during a service he attended at the National Cathedral, calling into question his plans for the mass deportation of illegal immigrants (which the vast majority of Americans supported). Of course, that resulted in Budde getting an interview on national television and gooey praises from the liberal ladies of The View.
“So, let me ask you this. You seem to have more fearlessness than anyone in Congress right now, ma'am,” praised fill-in moderator Joy Behar. “What made you decide to use that opportunity for that message and did you have any apprehension about it?”
Budde said her “responsibility that morning, yesterday morning was to reflect, to pray with the nation for unity, and as I was pondering what, what are the foundations of unity, you know, I wanted to emphasize respecting the honor and dignity of every human being, basic honesty and humility.”
She also suggested that she was “trying to counter the narrative that is so divisive and polarizing and in which people, real people are being harmed.”
Fake Republican Ana Navarro clownishly used a mocking meme incorrectly in an attempt to hype up Budde to the audience. “You know, bishop, I was struck by your tone. You were so gentle, you were so respectful, you were very demure and very mindful,” she said, going on to tout how Budde basically said it to the faces of the leaders of the administration and their wives with ties to immigration:
NAVARRO: And you said all of this with Trump, J.D. Vance and their families including Melania, an immigrant and Usha Vance, a child of immigrants sitting there. And their reactions were very visible for all of us to see. You could see their faces. Were you paying attention to how your message was received by them in that moment, and do you think it sunk in even a little bit?
BUDDE: You know, I've been preaching for a long time and I've long since given up trying to read people's body language as I'm preaching. Because I would be wrong most of the time, so I don't know. I was aware that obviously people were listening and, but I couldn't allow myself in that moment to -- I just had to keep going, right? I had what I felt was on my heart to say and I had to leave it to them to all of us to take from whatever, you know, from whatever my words were to heart in whichever way they could and leave – as they say, leave the rest to God.
Pretend independent Sara Haines lauded how Budde seemed to “strike a nerve” with Trump since he called it “not a good service” and Budde a” radical left hardline Trump hater.” She also insisted that it was others, not Budde who were politicizing the sermon:
Now, given your role, it doesn't seem surprising that you would speak out for the marginalized as anyone who’s read the bible and knows the path of Jesus, but do you think your message is being misconstrued and politicized?
“How could I it not be politicized, right?” Budde agreed. “We're in a hyper political climate. One of the things I caution about is the culture of contempt in which we live that immediately rushes to the worst possible interpretations of what people are saying and to put them in categories such as the ones you just described. That's part of the air we breathe now.”
It was co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin who provided the very light pushback on Budde. “Given that we live in such a divided time as you've reflect on and knowing how this message might be received by Trump supporters, I wonder if your words may have had more impact if they were shared one-on-one with the President and was there an opportunity to have that conversation?” she wanted to know.
“I've never been invited to a one-on-one conversation with President Trump and I – you know I would welcome that opportunity. I have no idea how that would go,” Budde explained as Behar could he heard giggling in the back ground. “I can assure him and everyone listening that I would be as respectful as I would with any person, and certainly of his office for which I have a great deal of respect, but I -- the invitation would have to come from him.”
The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read:
ABC’s The View
January 22, 2025
11:17:48 a.m. Eastern(…)
JOY BEHAR: So, let me ask you this. You seem to have more fearlessness than anyone in Congress right now, ma'am.
[Applause]
What made you decide to use that opportunity for that message and did you have any apprehension about it?
MARIANN EDGAR BUDDE: My response --Thank you, first of all, for allowing me to be with you today.
My responsibility that morning, yesterday morning was to reflect, to pray with the nation for unity, and as I was pondering what, what are the foundations of unity, you know, I wanted to emphasize respecting the honor and dignity of every human being, basic honesty and humility. And then I also realized that in -- that unity requires a certain degree of mercy, mercy and compassion and understanding.
And so, knowing that a lot of people as I said in our country right now are really scared, I wanted to take the opportunity in the context of that – of service for unity to say we need to treat everyone with dignity and we need to be merciful and to – I was trying to counter the narrative that is so divisive and polarizing and in which people, real people are being harmed.
BEHAR: Okay.
ANA NAVARRO: You know, bishop, I was struck by your tone. You were so gentle, you were so respectful, you were very demure and very mindful.
And you said all of this with Trump, J.D. Vance and their families including Melania, an immigrant and Usha Vance, a child of immigrants sitting there. And their reactions were very visible for all of us to see. You could see their faces. Were you paying attention to how your message was received by them in that moment, and do you think it sunk in even a little bit?
BUDDE: You know, I've been preaching for a long time and I've long since given up trying to read people's body language as I'm preaching. Because I would be wrong most of the time, so I don't know. I was aware that obviously people were listening and, but I couldn't allow myself in that moment to -- I just had to keep going, right? I had what I felt was on my heart to say and I had to leave it to them to all of us to take from whatever, you know, from whatever my words were to heart in whichever way they could and leave – as they say, leave the rest to God.
[Applause]
SARA HAINES: Bishop, predictably you seem to strike a nerve. President Trump initially said yesterday it was, quote, “not a good service,” unquote, but overnight he took to social media to say you were a, quote, “radical left hard line Trump hater” unquote that you brought the church into politics and that you owe your church and the public an apology.
Now, given your role, it doesn't seem surprising that you would speak out for the marginalized as anyone who’s read the bible and knows the path of Jesus, but do you think your message is being misconstrued and politicized?
BUDDE: Ooh, well, sure, yeah. But I -- I think if you read what I -- what I said and -- I mean, how could I it not be politicized, right? We're in a hyper political climate. One of the things I caution about is the culture of contempt in which we live that immediately rushes to the worst possible interpretations of what people are saying and to put them in categories such as the ones you just described. That's part of the air we breathe now.
And I was trying to speak a truth that I felt needed to be said, but to do it as respectful and kind a way as I could. And also to bring other voices into the conversation, which voices that had not been heard in the public space for some time.
ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN: And, bishop, given that we live in such a divided time as you've reflect on and knowing how this message might be received by Trump supporters, I wonder if your words may have had more impact if they were shared one-on-one with the President and was there an opportunity to have that conversation?
BUDDE: I've never been invited to a one-on-one conversation with President Trump and I – you know I would welcome that opportunity. I have no idea how that would go.
[Behar laughing in the background]
I can assure him and everyone listening that I would be as respectful as I would with any person, and certainly of his office for which I have a great deal of respect, but I -- the invitation would have to come from him.
(…)
