Trump Jr. dismisses ‘likelihood’ of Pelosi praying for Trump with Satan comparison

President Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., took aim at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Thursday after his father appeared to knock the congresswoman at the National Prayer Breakfast earlier for past comments she made about praying for him.

“Likelihood of Nancy Pelosi praying for Trump is about the same as the likelihood of Satan running around quoting the Scriptures,” the president’s son tweeted on Thursday morning.

Likelihood of Nancy Pelosi praying for Trump is about the same as the likelihood of Satan running around quoting the Scriptures. https://t.co/rdz7UdOEvu

— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) February 6, 2020

His comments eventually prompted the word “Satan” to trend on Twitter later in the afternoon, as a number of religious figures and social media users pointed to passages in the Bible where Satan has quoted Scripture, including to Jesus himself.

"The devil… said to him, 'If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written [in the Scriptures], "He will give his angels charge of you," and "On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone."'" -Matthew 4:5-6 https://t.co/zd2TbLXuPI

— Fr. Matthew Schneider, LC (@FrMatthewLC) February 6, 2020

Once you realize that Satan quotes Scripture from the minute he shows up in the gospels, you understand why Jesus reserves his strongest words for religious leaders who quote Scripture to lead God’s people astray. pic.twitter.com/ZyY6LonQ4O

— Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove (@wilsonhartgrove) February 6, 2020

Um. In Matthew 4:5-6, the devil **quite literally** quotes Scripture. He recites Psalm 91:11-12.https://t.co/Cii7Hpdhb4 https://t.co/qnJbFfy5Su

— Aaron Blake (@AaronBlake) February 6, 2020

Not for nothing, but Satan quoted Psalms to Jesus during the temptation on the Temple Mount. (Jesus countered by quoting Deuteronomy.) https://t.co/kEByImgYyz

— Joshua Eaton (@joshua_eaton) February 6, 2020

Satan quotes scripture in Luke 3, Matthew 4 and Mark 1. Passages in which Jesus resists the temptations of using his own power and privilege to serve himself and his own self-aggrandizement. https://t.co/ogTwaTA9U9

— Christopher B James (@chrisbjames) February 6, 2020

Trump Jr.’s comments on Twitter Thursday followed closely after remarks his father made at the National Prayer Breakfast earlier in the day.

During the event, the president took an apparent swipe at Pelosi, who has repeatedly stated that she has prayed for Trump in the past, and Republican Sen. Mitt Romney (Utah), who spoke about his religion earlier this week when explaining his decision to vote to convict Trump.

“Weeks ago, and again yesterday, courageous Republican politicians and leaders had the wisdom, fortitude and strength to do what everyone knows was right,” Trump said at the breakfast.

“I don’t like people who use their faith as justification for doing what they know is wrong. Nor do I like people who say ‘I pray for you’ when they know that’s not so,” he continued.

Pelosi fired back at Trump later in the day.

“I don’t know if the president understands about prayer or people who pray,” Pelosi said a press conference later on Thursday. “I pray for the United States of America, I pray for him, I pray for President Bush still, President Obama … because it’s a heavy responsibility … I pray hard for him because he’s so off the track of our Constitution, our values, our country.”