U.S. President Donald Trump bows his head in prayer at a Medal of Honor ceremony at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 2, 2026. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
A former official in President Donald Trump's first administration said the quiet part out loud on Wednesday about the administration's support for Christian nationalist movements.
William Wolfe, a radical Christian pastor, gave a speech at Bethel Church in Petersburg, West Virginia, where he admitted that the aim of Christian nationalist movements is to impose their faith on everyone else, according to a report by Right Wing Watch. The outlet described Wolfe as a "fanatical anti-immigrant activist."
Wolfe previously served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense at the Pentagon and as a Director of Legislative Affairs at the Department of State during the first Trump administration. He now leads the Center for Baptist Leadership, according to the report.
Wolfe said during the speech that Christians "should not hesitate" to tell others to follow God's laws.
"And frankly, yes, we are going to impose it upon you," he added. "If you don't like it, I'm sorry, but this is good and right and just if it lines up with God's standards, and I am going to enforce my morality on you inasmuch as our morality is God's morality."
Groups like the Interfaith Alliance have accused the Trump administration of weaponizing faith to advance its political goals. Some officials in the second Trump administration also have close ties to Christian nationalist and prosperity gospel organizations, The Guardian reported.
Wolfe suggested in his speech that those officials are an important sign that the Trump administration is working to promote the Christian nationalist movement.
"You should always check yourselves," Wolfe said. "Do I believe what God believes? Am I defending what God says is good? And if it is, then you should have the courage to say, 'This is how we're going to run our town, this is how we're going to run our county, this is how we're going to run our state, and this is how we should run the United States of America by legislating the morality that we can find in the Bible.'"