Marc Jost, a Swiss parliamentarian of evangelical faith, will not attend another National Prayer Breakfast (NPB) while Donald Trump is president of the United States.

The politician from the Swiss Evangelical Party (EVP), who is also a theologian and former general secretary of the Swiss Evangelical Alliance, explained his disappointment to Evangelical Focus after the 2026 NPB, which he has also attended in previous years.

Approximately 20 other parliamentarians from European countries travelled to this year's prayer event, held as usual in Washington, D.C.

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“It was the worst speech I have heard so far: full of division, defamation and hatred”, Marc Jost explained in answers to Evangelical Focus. “Trump abused the prayer breakfast in the worst possible way for his own selfish purposes”.

Marc's opinion carries weight because he himself has promoted prayer meetings between politicians of different stripes in his native Switzerland, seeking to convey that same vision of bringing political adversaries together around prayer and the message of the Christian faith.

The US National Prayer Breakfast has been held since 1953, usually on the first Thursday in February. Asked how he would compare this year's event with previous ones he attended in the US, the Swiss representative said, “apart from a few pleasant encounters and rays of hope, it was a huge disappointment. As long as Trump is speaking there, I won't be going back”.

Jost travelled with another Swiss parliamentarian, Martin Haab, a member of the conservative Swiss People's Party (SVP).

Trump: Disparaging his opponents and praising himself

Trump's speech on 5 February at the 2026 Prayer Breakfast included disparaging remarks about political opponents present in the room, the reiteration of conspiracy theories about alleged electoral fraud, and references to God as the driving force behind his own political career.

“I don't know how a person of faith can vote for a Democrat. I really don't”, he said. “And I know we have some here today and I don't know why they're here”. Later, Trump went on to attack members of the opposition party in the room: “This will be the last year that Democrats show up to this event, I tell you. But I've got to say, how on earth do you vote for these people?”

Trump at the National Prayer Breakfast: "They rigged the second election. I had to win it. I had to win it. I needed it for my own ego. I would've had a bad ego for the rest of my life. Now I really have a big ego. Beating these lunatics was incredible ... the first time they… pic.twitter.com/KpExEgj3fg

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 5, 2026

Trump insisted that Democrat Joe Biden's victory in 2021 was due to electoral fraud. “You know, they rigged the second election. I had to win it, had to win it. I needed it for my own ego. I would have had a bad ego for the rest of my life. (...) Beating these lunatics was incredible”.

Trump presented himself as the greatest defender of Christians worldwide in modern history. On the persecution of Christians in northern Nigeria, he said: “They have a little bit of ISIS now again. And we knocked the hell out of them the other day in Nigeria because they were killing Christians. (...) When Christians come under attack, they know they're going to be attacked violently and viciously by President Trump. I know it's not a nice thing to say, but that's the way it is”.

On ICE and the deportation of undocumented immigrants, he said: “You can't have people going to churches and coming out and have criminals taking advantage and doing things that nobody wants to even describe”.

On criticism of his autocratic style, he said: “They always like to say Trump is a dictator. They love that. I'm not a dictator, but they were like dictators”, and added, referring to the Covid-19 pandemic: “They were like the Gestapo; they were arresting people for going to church”.

Towards the end of his long speech, Donald Trump mentioned the Bible for the first time. “As the Bible tells us, blessed are the peacemakers”, he said. “That's true. The peacemakers are very important. But you can only have peace, I find, through strength. If you don't have strength, peace is very hard, and we have strength. In one year, I've ended eight raging wars”.

Jonathan Jackson's prayer for ‘greater levels of compassion’

The event was introduced by neo-Pentecostal pastor Paula White, probably Donald Trump's strongest evangelical supporter, and ended with a prayer by Democratic Party Congressman Jonathan L. Jackson, son of the late evangelical reverend Jesse Jackson.

It is always an honor to be a part of and come together for the 74th National Prayer Breakfast. pic.twitter.com/TF3EWbbjlO

— Rep. Jonathan L. Jackson (@rep_jackson) February 6, 2026

Jackson Jr. asked God that the US president be “mindful of the poor’ and guided by God toward “greater levels of compassion”. He also prayed that Trump would have ‘greater clarity, greater courage and greater capacity to do what is right”.

“We are all Americans, all made in the image of God”, he said.

Congressman Jackson received a delegation of parliamentarians from European countries on Capitol Hill after the gathering.

“We thanked him for his impressive prayer”, says Marc Jost. “This seems all the more extraordinary because Trump insulted the Democrats in his speech and insinuated that they were not Christians at all. The Democrat Jackson then prayed for Trump”.

Prayer breakfasts in Europe

In his comments on different regions of the world, Trump criticised European countries for their policies on energy and immigration, for not ceding Greenland to the US, and recommended that they become more ‘smart’.

The Prayer Breakfast already has a long tradition in Europe already. It is celebrated annually at the European Union Parliament in Brussels, as well as in countries such as Ukraine, Spain, among others.

In 2025, the German Christian politician Frank Heinrich shared his own impressions after attending the US prayer meeting.