What statements did the United Methodist Church make about Donald Trump in 2020 2021?

1. Pastoral tone and vote-as-conscience guidance around the 2020 election

In the run-up to and aftermath of the 2020 presidential contest, United Methodist leaders and agencies framed the election as a moment to encourage voters toward civic duty and to emphasize shared values while avoiding formal candidate endorsements—reminding members that civic participation should reflect Wesleyan values and character rather than partisan litmus tests ^{[4] [1]}. Local clergy responses varied, with some United Methodists expressing relief or hope at particular electoral outcomes and others calling for continued focus on issues such as racial justice, climate, gender and immigrant rights as priorities for faith-based action regardless of who holds the presidency ^{[1] [4]}.

2. Explicit condemnation of incitement after the January 6 attack

Following the assault on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, seminary and denominational voices within the United Methodist family publicly tied blame for incitement to then-President Trump and called for direct accountability: a seminary leader urged prayer and phone calls to lawmakers to “cast shame on those, starting with President Trump, who have incited this violent insurrection” ^[2]. Other United Methodist statements from congregations and bishops emphasized grief, the need for peacemaking, and the importance of democratic norms and accountability after the violence ^[2].

3. Continued institutional critique of immigration and refugee policies associated with Trump-era actions

United Methodist bishops and denominational agencies have repeatedly denounced demeaning rhetoric and restrictive immigration or foreign-assistance policies tied to the Trump administration: the Council of Bishops and regional bishops issued statements condemning reported derogatory comments about immigrants and criticized executive actions that suspended foreign assistance or restricted refugees, calling such measures harmful to human dignity and urging rescission or apology ^{[5] [6] [3]}. Those statements positioned the church’s social principles and commitment to refugees and migrants as the theological basis for critique ^{[6] [3]}.

4. Austerity: institution-level restraint on explicit endorsements, but robust moral critique

The denomination’s public posture reflected a pattern: formal institutional restraint from endorsing candidates—due in part to nonprofit rules—paired with robust moral and policy critique from bishops, agencies and local leaders when presidential rhetoric or policy intersected with core United Methodist commitments ^{[4] [6]}. The church’s public communications during this period therefore combined pastoral care for congregations, advocacy for vulnerable populations, and calls for civic accountability that at times named President Trump directly as a source of concern ^{[2] [6]}.

5. Limits of the public record and what remains unverified

Available reporting from United Methodist news outlets, conference statements and agency releases documents explicit condemnations of incitement and of immigration rhetoric and policy, plus guidance on civic engagement during the 2020 cycle ^{[2] [5] [6] [4]}. There is no single exhaustive catalog in these sources of every local pastor’s comment or every agency-level letter in 2020–2021; therefore this summary focuses only on documented, public statements in the provided reporting and does not claim to capture every private or local remark ^{[1] [2]}.