Maxine Waters Declares at LA Megachurch She Was 'Sent by God' to Fight Against Donald Trump
Democrat Rep. Maxine Waters of California declared in a speech on Sunday at First African Methodist Episcopal Church in Los Angeles that she feels "sent by God" to oppose President Donald Trump and all the harm she says his administration is doing.
"We never dreamed we'd have someone in the White House who was divisive, who could not tell the truth, and who was intent on not making America great again, but taking America down!" Waters told the congregation, referring to Trump.
"I will not sit quietly and allow the President of the United States, or anybody else, to undo all that's been done," she added.
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"And ladies and gentlemen, I am in this fight!" she said.
Towards the end of her speech at the megachurch, the former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus suggested her will is guided by God.
"You've gotta know that I'm here to do the work that I was sent to do, and as pastor said to me when I came in this morning, when God sends you to do something, you just do it!" Waters vowed.
"So I have a message: I'm going back to Washington tomorrow morning, I'm going to tell them pastor told me to come here and just do it!"
The politician listed out a number of grievances she has with the Trump administration, including the illegal immigration crackdown.
"Most of all, we've got to talk about the children!" she urged, accusing Trump of "separating children from their parents."
Waters has been one of Trump's most outspoken critics, which has not gone unnoticed by the president. Back in June, Trump posted on Twitter:
"Congratulations to Maxine Waters, whose crazy rants have made her, together with [House Minority Leader] Nancy Pelosi, the unhinged FACE of the Democrat Party. Together, they will Make America Weak Again! But have no fear, America is now stronger than ever before, and I'm not going anywhere!"
Black Christian conservative leaders have also spoken out against Waters, particularly after she suggested that Americans go out and harass Trump administration officials "anytime" and "anywhere" they see them in public.
"Her call to extremism based on where another American citizen works and who they associate with must be sternly addressed by Speaker Paul Ryan," Star Parker, president of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education, said at a press conference.
"An apology is not enough, nor did she offer one when asked by the House Speaker. As we move into two months of intense debate over SCOTUS nomination, the censuring of Maxine Waters becomes of extreme urgency."
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a government watchdog organization pursing complaints against public officials, previously named Waters as "one of the Most Corrupt Members of Congress."
CREW argued that Waters used her position as a senior member of Congress and member of the House Financial Services Committee to persuade Treasury officials in 2008 to meet with OneUnited Bank, without disclosing that her husband held stock in the bank.
"By contacting then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to request a meeting, allegedly for a group of minority-owned banks, but then arranging for only one bank — OneUnited, in which she had a financial interest — to attend, Rep. Waters violated House conflict of interest rules," said at the time CREW Executive Director Melanie Sloan.
The ethics charges against Waters were dropped in 2012, however.
Watch Waters' speech at First African Methodist Episcopal Church below: