Skip to Content

Speaking Truth to Power

February 4, 2025

A joke started making the rounds that January was a very long year. Three weeks into the Trump administration, every breaking news alert seems to be worse than the last.

At moments like this, my colleagues and I find comfort in working on the very issues that impact so many people and are in the headlines – support for children at the border, strengthening gun violence prevention efforts, protecting the right to reproductive health care, combating hate, preserving life-saving U.S. foreign assistance, promoting factual information on climate change, defending democracy, and so much more.

I recently returned from standing alongside Holocaust survivors and world leaders in Poland to help share the relevance of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. I’m reminded of the famous saying that the opposite of love is not hate. It’s indifference.

I’m writing today to share some of the recent work we’ve done to try to drive meaningful change through our communications work that takes Elie Wiesel’s advice to heart. 

We started the New Year mourning the death of President Carter as we honored his legacy working to advance social justice, human rights and environmentalism. Then, we listened as Episcopal Bishop of Washington Mariann Budde called on the new administration to have mercy on the most vulnerable among us. She urged President Trump to recognize that our friends and neighbors are scared and reminded him bluntly and directly that everyone has a right to be treated with respect and dignity.

The message of President Carter’s efforts to build peace through diplomacy, and Bishop Budde’s sermon were carried beyond those at Washington National Cathedral to millions around the world. 

My colleagues at West End Strategy Team and I are honored to support the Cathedral at these historic moments and proud to be by Bishop Budde’s side as she explains why her message is so important now

We’re privileged to partner with organizations and individuals who advocate for the rights and well-being of all.

Matt Dorf
President & Founder, West End Strategy Team

What Happens After You Ask Trump to ‘Have Mercy’? Threats, Praise and Hope.

Bishop Mariann Budde returned to Washington National Cathedral on Sunday for her first public service since her viral inauguration sermon.

Jimmy Carter Remembered in Washington as a ‘Practitioner of Good Works’

At a pomp-filled state funeral, mourners paid tribute to Mr. Carter and argued that he was a more successful leader than many remember. “It’s time to redeem his presidency,” a former aide said.

Carter’s Funeral Captures the American Story at a Fraught Political Moment

The service, in Washington’s National Cathedral, was a paean for a humble man from a tiny Georgia town who rose to great power — a peanut farmer, nuclear physicist, submariner, husband, father, civil rights pioneer, president and Nobel laureate who died, at age 100, last month.

Why Bishop Mariann Budde Wanted to Speak to Donald Trump

“If you know what people are thinking about when they’re coming into church on Sunday morning, it’s very important to acknowledge that,” Budde says.

Americans Remember Former President Carter’s ‘Lifelong Legacy’

Outside National Cathedral Memorial
Former President Jimmy Carter will be remembered for his kind spirit, faith and humanitarian efforts.

Bishop Mariann Budde Tells NPR ‘I Won’t Apologize’ for Sermon Addressing Trump

Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde joined NPR’s All Things Considered on Wednesday to discuss her hope President Trump’s new administration would show compassion toward vulnerable communities following a sermon she made on Tuesday.

Jimmy Carter Honored at State Funeral, Flown to Georgia for Interment After His Death at 100

A national funeral service was held for former President Jimmy Carter at Washington National Cathedral this morning, marking the conclusion of his state funeral.

The Bishop Who Pleaded With Trump: ‘Was Anyone Going to Say Anything?’

Bishop Budde locked eyes with President Trump and made a plea for mercy — and the war over spiritual authority in America was ignited anew.

Bishop Budde on Trump, Her Sermon and How Religion Can’t Be Separated From Politics

The bishop who asked President Trump to “have mercy” to immigrants and transgender teenagers says politics and faith can’t be separated.

Rachel Maddow Talks With the Bishop Who Asked Trump Directly to Show Mercy

Rachel Maddow talks with Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington about speaking from the pulpit directly to Donald Trump about showing mercy for the vulnerable people targeted by his policies, and what has happened since, as well as the role of the church in moral leadership in the United States.

Bishop Budde on Her Viral Trump Sermon: ‘You Don’t Always Get to Choose When the Call Comes’

Budde’s sermon at the national prayer service went viral last week for her simple, calm, yet pointed words toward the president, who sat with his family, appealing directly to his sense of decency.

Back to top