A pastor in Texas who is a prominent Christian supporter of President Donald Trump, said he doesn’t regret backing Trump in light of the Jan. 6 Capitol breach.
Robert Jeffress said he spoke with both Trump and Vice President Mike Pence on Tuesday.
“When reporter asked if I regretted my support I said ‘Absolutely not! Most pro-life and religious liberty President and VP in history!’” the pastor wrote on social media.
Jeffress, the senior pastor of First Baptist Dallas, was accused by Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) on Monday of claiming the 2020 election was stolen. Kinzinger, a harsh Trump critic, later backed down from the accusation.
“You know sir? You are absolutely correct. You did act honorably, and while my point remains about the Church and the need for pastors to lead, you did not press those stolen election conspiracies. I am sorry for including you in that,” Kinzinger wrote to Jeffress on Twitter.
“Apology accepted and appreciated! We are praying for you and for all our elected officials,” Jeffress said.
Trump won the 2016 election in part because of strong support from the Christian community.
“When Joe Biden becomes president, we should commend him for the things he does right. We should condemn the things he does wrong. And above all, we must pray fervently for our president,” he added.
Trump told reporters in Maryland on Tuesday that the speech he gave before the breach “has been analyzed, and people thought that what I said was totally appropriate.”
“And if you look at what other people have said—politicians at a high level—about the riots during the summer, the horrible riots in Portland and Seattle, in various other—other places, that was a real problem—what they said,” he added. “But they’ve analyzed my speech and words and my final paragraph, my final sentence, and everybody, to the T, thought it was totally appropriate.”
