Peace deals not Donald Trump's stairway to heaven? US President muses over afterlife amid politics

Donald Trump’s latest reflections on his presidency have taken an unusually spiritual turn. The former businessman-turned-president has begun invoking heaven not as a distant ideal but as part of his political pitch — though, by his own admission, he’s not too confident about getting there.

“I don’t think there’s anything going to get me in heaven. I think I’m not, maybe, heaven-bound,” Trump said recently when asked whether his foreign peace efforts might earn him divine credit.

Ever since surviving an assassination attempt in July 2024, Trump has framed his political journey as a divine mission. “God saved me to make America great again,” he declared soon after, turning that line into a rallying cry for his supporters.

In the months since, the 79-year-old leader has repeatedly woven religion into his speeches — mixing policy and piety in a way only he can. “I want to try to get to heaven, if possible,” he said in August while discussing his attempts to mediate the Russia–Ukraine conflict. “I’m hearing I’m not doing well.”

Even so, Trump doesn’t seem too worried about his celestial scorecard. “Maybe I won’t make it to heaven,” he quipped recently. “But I’ve made life a lot better for a lot of people.”

He’s also used his spiritual musings to justify a more moralistic domestic agenda, arguing that faith is essential for decency and order. “If you’re not a believer and you believe you go nowhere, what’s the reason to be good, really?” he wondered in a recent interview. “There has to be some kind of report card up there.”

His comments coincide with a new White House-backed prayer initiative, which he says reflects his desire to “prove to God that you’re good.”

Still, his moral transformation hasn’t softened critics. Religious leaders — including the late Pope Francis and his successor — have condemned his immigration policies and rhetoric. Civil rights groups accuse him of eroding the line between church and state.

Despite the backlash, Trump’s evangelical base remains steadfast. Polls show that more than 80 percent of White evangelical Protestants continue to back him — heaven or not.