FFRF Action Fund’s “Theocrat of the Week” is a Republican U.S. Senate candidate who at a recent pastor summit urged Christian leaders to run for public office and called for the dissolution of the separation of state and church.
Earlier this month, Michael Whatley, who is running for a North Carolina U.S. Senate seat currently held by retiring GOP Sen. Thom Tillis, professed to an audience of pastors that the United States does not “need” the separation of state and church. At the Nehemiah Project Pastor Summit in Raleigh, N.C., last week, Whatley encouraged faith leaders to run for office and stated that churches and their congregations need to be more involved in politics.
“We need more men and women of faith in the public square,” Whatley said during his remarks. “We don’t need separation of faith and politics. We don’t need separation of church and state.”
According to Whatley, what we do need is more people of faith in office. “You’re the ones that have the influence, that have the day-to-day impact on every single family and every single member of your community,” Whatley said.
He encouraged his audience to push their congregations to register to vote and to recognize the “need to take this state in the right direction — not just the correct direction, the right direction — and we need to be a godly state.” Whatley’s remarks also touched on abortion restrictions, public health measures that closed churches during the Covid-19 pandemic, Israel and book bans in public school libraries.
The pastor summit was hosted by the American Renewal Project, whose website states that its mission is to urge Christian churches to “embrace [their] role in the public square.” The project claims to “minister to people of faith in their transition from spectators to participants in the cultural arena,” with an “emphasis on religion and morality, the cornerstones of political freedom in the United States.”
The American Renewal Project argues that new generations are “unaware” or “ignorant” of America’s supposed “original Biblical founding.” On its Facebook page, the project posted recorded remarks from President Trump that were screened at last week’s summit. The post was captioned, “President Trump cheered on the American Renewal Project as we recruit 500 pastors, faith leaders & congregants to run for office in 2026 & 2028. The mission continues — empowering the Church to disseminate the truth from pulpit to the public square.”
Trump also announced his support for Whatley on his Truth Social platform after Whatley’s campaign officially launched last month. Whatley is considered the front-runner for his party’s nomination in the 2026 race. The winner will likely face Democrat Roy Cooper, a former two-term governor, in next year’s general election.
Whatley served as the chair of the North Carolina Republican Party from 2019 to 2024 and as the chairman of the Republican National Committee from March 2024 to August 2025. He also served as the RNC’s general counsel. FFRF Action Fund asserts that U.S. senators must firmly support our secular democracy and the separation of state and church, the true cornerstone of political freedom in the United States.
FFRF Action Fund is a 501(c)(4) organization that develops and advocates for legislation, regulations and government programs to preserve the constitutional principle of separation between state and church. It also advocates for the rights and views of nonbelievers, endorses candidates for political office, and publicizes the views of elected officials concerning religious liberty issues.