President Trump on Saturday said America worships God, not government, during his commencement speech at Liberty University.
“We don’t need a lecture from Washington on how to lead our lives,” he said at the ceremony in Lynchburg, Va., to an audience of 38,000 people.
He encouraged the soon-to-be graduates to chase their dreams.
“As you build good lives, you will also be rebuilding our nation,” he said. “You’ll be leaders in your communities. Stewards of great institutions. And defenders of liberty … you will have the faith to replace a broken establishment with a government that serves and protects the people.”
The speech marked his first commencement address as president, and his third time speaking at Liberty. Trump drew parallels in his speech between the school’s founding, his presidential bid and the founding of the United States.
“In America, we don’t worship government, we worship God,” he said, citing the phrase “one nation under God” in the “Pledge of Allegiance,” and said that the country was founded based on faith in God.
President Trump says, "in America we don't worship government, we worship God," while speaking at Liberty University https://t.co/B7NKuUMEnd pic.twitter.com/FVVmTZzxVF— CBS News (@CBSNews) May 13, 2017
He also joked that divine intervention had brought him back to speak at the school and had contributed to his surprise presidential victory.
“I’m guessing there are some people here today that thought either one of those things would really require major help from God,” he said. “Do we agree? And we got it.”
