A letter posted Tuesday by leaders of the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., took aim at President Trump for his recent comments and “racialized rhetoric.”
Citing recent behavior by Trump they felt to be racially motivated, top clergy of the cathedral said it was time to join leaders of the African American community to speak out against the president.
The letter, titled “Have We No Decency? A Response to President Trump,” asked, “As faith leaders who serve at Washington National Cathedral — the sacred space where America gathers at moments of national significance — we feel compelled to ask: After two years of President Trump’s words and actions, when will Americans have enough?”
Signed by the Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde, the Very Rev. Randolph Marshall Hollerith, and the Rev. Canon Kelly Brown Douglas, the letter compares Trump’s presidency to the era of Sen. Joseph McCarthy.
“McCarthy had free rein to say and do whatever he wished. With unbridled speech, he stoked the fears of an anxious nation with lies; destroyed the careers of countless Americans; and bullied into submissive silence anyone who dared criticize him,” the religious leaders continued.
The leaders further chided Trump for his comments last week about four congresswomen and his tweets criticizing Democratic Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings and the conditions of Baltimore. “This week, President Trump crossed another threshold. Not only did he insult a leader in the fight for racial justice and equality for all persons; not only did he savage the nations from which immigrants to this country have come; but now he has condemned the residents of an entire American city.” The clergy claimed that Trump’s comments about the city’s rodent infestation were a “more than a ‘dog-whistle'” to white supremacists.
The leaders then warned, “Where will he go from here? … Make no mistake about it, words matter. And, Mr. Trump’s words are dangerous.”
The letter further espoused progressive values embraced by the authors and finished with a short prayer for the Trump administration, asking for “wisdom and grace in the exercise of their duties that they may serve all people of this nation, and promote the dignity and freedom of every person.”
