Before he became the GOP Pennsylvania gubernatorial nominee he is today, far-right state Sen. Doug Mastriano (R) led a group prayer with Christian nationalists a week before the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection in which he openly called for a MAGA power grab.
Rolling Stone magazine published a video of Mastriano’s prayer, which had been recorded during a Zoom conference call on Dec. 30, 2022. The virtual event was billed as a “Global Prayer for Election Integrity” featuring the far-right religious leaders of the New Apostolic Reformation movement.
Mastriano — who at the time was leading the charge in his state to overturn the results of the 2020 election on Donald Trump’s behalf — prayed for God to help “in these dark times.”
“I pray that we’ll take responsibility. We’ll seize the power that we had given to us by the Constitution, and as well by You, providentially,” he said. “I pray for the leaders also in the federal government, God, on the Sixth of January that they will rise up with boldness.”
The far-right Republican also prayed for God to “bless” the letters Trump had apparently asked him to send to then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) that would supposedly “embolden” them to “disregard” the 2020 election results in Pennsylvania.
One week later, a mob of Trump’s enraged supporters attacked the Capitol after the then-president riled them up with lies about the election at his D.C. rally on the Ellipse.
Mastriano chartered buses to the rally that day, and photos revealed that he stood outside the Capitol as the attack unfolded around him.
The gubernatorial nominee has since been questioned by the FBI and subpoenaed by the House Jan. 6 Committee. He briefly cooperated with the committee, then abruptly refused to answer any questions when he appeared for a testimony. Last week, Mastriano sued the House panel, along with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), alleging the same argument that’s been pushed by MAGAworld and Trump allies for months — that the committee is illegitimate due to its makeup.
Watch the video below:
