Who is Paula White-Cain?

On 7 February 2025, US President Donald Trump established the White House Faith Office, by executive order, naming televangelist Paula White-Cain as its leader. It was an unsurprising yet controversial appointment that has attracted criticism from Christians on both the left and right of the political spectrum.

Prior to her recent involvement in politics, Paula White-Cain (often referred to simply as Paula White) was best known as a televangelist. After a troubled childhood marked by abuse, White-Cain became a Christian in her teenage years. With her second husband, Randy White, she founded The Tampa Christian Center, which later became Without Walls International Church, a multisite megachurch that eventually went into insolvency in 2014. By this time, White was senior pastor at New Destiny Christian Center in Apopka, Florida. Paula White Ministries launched in 2001 and by 2006, her show Paula White Today appeared on nine television networks.

There is a long-documented history between White and the reinstated president, making her appointment to the post somewhat foreseeable. He appeared on her TV show several times, and it has even been suggested that she led Trump to faith, although this has not been claimed by the pair themselves.

White chaired Trump’s evangelical advisory board during his 2016 presidential campaign and delivered the invocation at his first inauguration in January 2017, notably the first woman to have been afforded the privilege. During Trump’s first term, she served as one of his spiritual advisers and was a vocal supporter of many of his policies. This continued throughout his first presidency and the Biden administration. While some prominent evangelical leaders abandoned Trump after the Capitol Hill riots of January 6 2021, White remained loyal, making her a natural selection for Trump.

Controversies

In the past few weeks, her appointment to the White House has been described by some evangelical leaders as “an abomination”. Some conservative Christians have argued that she is not qualified to be a pastor because she is female.

Social media commentator Jon Root said it was “the worst decision President Trump has made since taking office”, adding that White was a “heretic” who “pedals the prosperity gospel” - a theology founded upon the belief that financial and material success is attributable to God and is thus evidence of divine favour - which she has voiciferously denied.

Nevertheless, critics will argue that both Trump and White believe that success - measured by wealth - is a sign of divine favour.

In 2007, the Senate Finance Committee commenced a multi-year investigation into her ministry, Without Walls International. The final report concluded that it paid salaries for extended family members, owned and operated a private jet and frequently chartered flights including trips to the Cayman Islands and a boxing match in Las Vegas, and made down payments on a mansion in Florida and a $3.5 million apartment in Trump Tower, New York. While no action was taken as a result of the report, many still consider it a stain on her record.

White’s personal life has also come under scrutiny. She has been married three times and faced previous allegations of marital unfaithfulness. In 2010, she was photographed leaving a hotel in Rome holding hands with fellow televangelist, Benny Hinn. Hinn apologised some months later for his “inappropriate relationship” with White, but she has denied any affair.

What is her current role?

White will lead the White House Faith Office, established to enable faith-based organisations “to compete on a level playing field for grants, contracts, programs, and other Federal funding opportunities”. The executive order is one of several initiatives that Trump’s administration has instituted to combat what is being termed “anti-Christian bias” in previous administrations. Others tasked with combatting the “anti-Christian weaponization of government” and “unlawful conduct targeting Christians” include high-ranking government officials such as the Attorney General and the Secretary of State.

Trump has long appealed to evangelical voters, the vast majority of whom have supported him across all three of his presidential campaigns. Seeking to advance the agendas of one’s voting base is always in the best interest of a new president, so an executive order that champions the interests of evangelical Christians is a natural decision.

And yet, the claims of “anti-Christian bias” in the federal government are disputed, notably by more liberal Christians who argue that Christians have largely held privilege in the United States since its establishment. They argue that these executive orders have more to do with wanting to elevate conservative ideology rather than promote the fundamentals of the Christian faith.

The impact of such executive orders remains to be seen. The policy implications may take the entirety of Trump’s presidency to be felt on the ground, and it is unclear whether faith organisations will have to meet certain ideological stipulations to be eligible.

Regardless of the coming impact, Paula White-Cain’s appointment is an indication that Trump remains committed to his American evangelical base, as well as rewarding a loyal ally with a prominent position in his new government.