US evangelist Franklin Graham has urged Christians to pray for former president Donald Trump who faces arrest over hush money payments.
Trump is expected to be indicted as soon as this week, with the potential charge of falsifying business records connected to paying off women who accused him of sexual encounters during his 2016 presidential campaign.
Graham has accused the media and the "left in Washington" of "attacking" Trump in a smear campaign to prevent him from running for office.
Several investigations have been made into Trump as he enters his third presidential run. He has denied all allegations of wrongdoing and accused prosecutors of enacting a politically motivated "witch hunt" to damage his campaign.
Trump and his businesses have faced thousands of lawsuits and numerous investigations over the past six decades and according to government watchdog, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, the business tycoon has been accused of over 50 criminal offenses since he launched his first political campaign in 2015 but has never been formally indicted.
Speaking on social media, Franklin Graham defended the controversial former president, saying: "We need to pray for our country and where it is headed. The left in Washington and across the country just can’t get their fill of attacking Donald Trump. They are so paranoid of him. The onslaught against him is continual. There’s no question, the media and the left manipulated the last election, and they are scared to death of Donald Trump’s possible return. So, night after night, the media runs negative stories about former President Trump. Now they're talking about the possibility of arresting him in the hopes that this would prevent him from running for president again—this would be a huge mistake. The charges against him are definitely politically motivated.
Graham went on to encourage Christians to stand in support of Trump, to pray for him and "work together to strengthen this nation."
"I would like to ask Christians across this country to pray specifically for former President @realDonaldTrump, that God’s hand would be upon him, protect him, and direct him in every step he takes—and that God’s will be done. We need to work together to strengthen this nation—not divide and destroy it."
When previously quizzed on the 2024 presidential primaries, Graham said he's "staying out of it" and "focusing on what God has called me to do, and that’s to preach the Gospel.”
He shared his disappointment in American politics at an event last year and asked people to "turn to God and ask for wisdom."
