In a one-of-a-kind interview, one of the nation’s most influential pastors — and a close associate of President Trump — provided some shocking examples of anti-Christian bias in the U.S. and expressed that she believes she has been called directly by God to protect religious liberty in America, adding that she also feels strongly that President Trump’s personal faith has grown in the past year.
For context, in an April 29, 2025, episode of the podcast Higher Ground With Billy Hallowell, Pastor Paula White-Cain shared her perspective on President Donald Trump’s faith in God and how it was shaped by the attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania, in 2024. In addition, White-Cain explained the mission behind her work with the White House Faith Office, which she oversees.
In the interview, White-Cain gave background on her role at the helm of the White House Faith Office, explaining why she took the position by saying, “Why did I sign up? Because I had an unprecedented opportunity given to me by this amazing president, this man who understands the importance of faith to be in the first-ever, newly created, historic White House Faith Office that gets to fight for people, whether they’re on the street, homeless, or whether they’re the CEO and they’re being targeted because of their faith.”
In addition, White-Cain told Hallowell that she believes that many Americans have no idea what kinds of threats to religious liberty are present in the country, saying, “I think we just have this really narrow tunnel vision sometimes, and we think it’s not gonna directly impact us, but it does.”
Building on her point, White-Cain explained that Americans are affected by anti-Christian bias, saying, “Whether they believe it or not, politics is in their life deciding how much they’re gonna pay on their property tax if they can be zoned … if they go to a church, if that church can have a daycare, because a secular daycare is much easier to zone than one that is of faith, if they want to adopt a child or get involved in foster care — there are gonna be rules and regulations on them.”
Furthermore, White-Cain provided background on how she met President Trump 24 years ago, saying that Trump was on her prayer list before he called her office out of the blue and said, “You’ve got the ‘it’ factor,” to which White-Cain replied, “Oh, sir, we call that the anointing.” She added that since partnering with President Trump, she has kept a vow to “never take a dime from him,” adding, “I’ve kept that covenant with God.”
Additionally, White-Cain opened up about her reaction to the attempt on President Trump’s life in Butler, Pennsylvania, in 2024, saying, “I just said, ‘We’ve gotta pray. No one knew what was happening — if he was dead, if he was alive.” Reflecting on the impact of the event on the president, she said, “He knows without a shadow of a doubt that God saved him and believes, like I do, that God saved him for a purpose and that he is now fulfilling that purpose.”
White-Cain spoke to Hallowell shortly before being appointed to President Trump’s recently established Religious Liberty Commission, which was announced on May 1, 2025, and is a coalition of faith leaders who will advise the White House on issues related to religious freedom in America. White-Cain serves on the commission alongside Bishop Robert Barron, Dr. Ben Carson, Dr. Phil McGraw, and several others.
Featured image credit: Paula White-Cain via X