Donald Trump’s political career has been defined by his insistence that he hires “the best people.” Yet few relationships expose the hollowness of that claim more clearly than his long-standing alliance with televangelist Paula White.
A newly spotlighted book, President Trump’s Pastor by Susan Puzio, lays bare how deeply flawed Trump’s personal vetting process truly is—and how political expediency repeatedly outweighed basic due diligence.
Paula White has spent decades selling a carefully constructed personal mythology: a dramatic “trailer-trash to riches” narrative portraying herself as a destitute victim who rose from a broken-down trailer through divine favor. That story has been repeated in sermons, interviews, and fundraising appeals, where emotional testimony is leveraged to solicit money from vulnerable believers.
According to documented accounts, that narrative collapses under even minimal scrutiny. The book argues that White’s origin story is not merely exaggerated but materially false—crafted to manufacture credibility, sympathy, and financial gain. In short, it functions as marketing, not truth.
Trump could have uncovered this with a routine background check. He did not.
Instead, Trump elevated White’s stature dramatically. In February 2025, he appointed her as a Special Government Employee and Senior Advisor to the reestablished White House Faith Office—granting institutional legitimacy to a figure long criticized for prosperity-gospel tactics and questionable theological claims.
White herself has repeatedly recounted the pivotal moment that cemented her influence: a May 2011 meeting at Trump Tower in which Trump reportedly asked her, “What does God say about me running for President?” That exchange, frequently cited by White as divinely significant, illustrates the transactional nature of their relationship. Trump was not seeking theological rigor. He was seeking validation—and access.
The motivation was clear. Trump needed evangelical support before the election and insulation afterward. Paula White delivered entrée into televangelical networks that translate faith language into political loyalty and donations. Vetting was secondary. Loyalty was primary.
This was not an oversight. It was a choice.
By prioritizing evangelical mobilization over integrity, Trump embraced a dangerous theological game—one where religious authority is weaponized for political power, and spiritual influence is conferred without accountability. The result is not merely poor judgment, but institutionalized negligence cloaked in faith.
Paula White’s rise is not an accident. It is evidence.
Evidence that Trump’s endorsement system does not reward truth, competence, or moral credibility—but usefulness. And when usefulness is the only standard, the consequences extend far beyond politics and into the erosion of public trust itself.
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