US Politics
Trump says there’s no reason to be good – other than to get into heaven
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.
Read more
Donald Trump told reporters that “there’s no reason to be good,” as he took questions in the Oval Office.
The president went on to say that the only possible incentive for being “good” is so that someone can “go to that next step.”
He made the comments as he spoke about his presidential prayer initiative, America Prays, which invites Americans to worship for an hour a day in honor of the country’s 250th birthday.
“We’re dealing – as you know – with all of the different – and not just evangelicals, Christians,” Trump said, explaining his initiative. “We’re dealing with lots of different faiths, religions. And I felt for a long time that if a country doesn’t have religion, doesn’t have faith, doesn’t have God, it’s gonna be very hard to be a good country.”
open image in gallery
He continued by saying that getting to “that next step,” presumably Heaven, is his “very important” to him.
“You know, there’s no reason to be good,” Trump said. “I wanna be good because you wanna prove to God you’re good so you go to that next step, right? So, that’s very important to me. I think it’s really, very important.”
Trump has repeatedly weighed in on theological issues of death, the afterlife and god in recent years, particularly after he was nearly assassinated at a rally in Pennsylvania in 2024.
Shortly after the shooting, which scarred his ear and killed a firefighter attending the rally, the then-Republican nominee released an email in which he claimed that he was saved by god.
Asking supporters to donate to his campaign, the email claimed that Trump’s “triumphant return to the White House was never supposed to happen.”
open image in gallery
“But I believe that God saved me for one reason: TO MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!,” the email continued.
The president referenced death once again last week, as he made a morbid comment about his future while speaking to One America News Network.
“I want to survive,” he said, “you look at what’s going on, it’s crazy. The rhetoric that these crazy Democrats are using is very dangerous; they made politics very dangerous.”
There has also been rampant speculation about Trump’s health during his second term, with the Republican president being interviewed by CNN via text message over the weekend.
He has been spotted with visible bruising on his hands and announced that he was diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency, after reporters noted his swollen ankles.
During his speeches, the president has slurred his words and even stopped taking interviews for several days in September, despite normally addressing the press several times a day. Trump later reappeared and said that he had not seen the “Trump Dead” hashtag, which had trended on X during his press absence.
