Trump to evangelicals: We're 'under siege,' will be stronger

[...] hours before the president's first public comments of the day, Comey told the Senate intelligence committee that Trump tried to get him to pledge loyalty and drop an investigation into former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.

"We will always support our evangelical community and defend your right and the right of all Americans to follow and to live by the teachings of their faith," the president told more than 1,000 activists meeting at a hotel across town from Capitol Hill, the scene of Comey's nationally televised testimony.

Trump spoke about his actions to safeguard religious freedom and continued, for the second straight day, to label congressional Democrats as "obstructionists" who are blocking his agenda.

Trump said restoring freedom also meant repealing and replacing the health care law enacted in 2010 by then-President Barack Obama, saying high deductibles and premiums have turned it into a "catastrophe."

[...] a replacement health care bill has yet to clear Congress despite seven years of pledges by Republicans to scrap the law and start over, and despite the fact that the GOP has full control of the White House and Congress.

The president urged the audience to help send more Republicans to Congress in next year's midterm elections, noting the GOP has just a 52-48 edge in the Senate and a slim advantage in the House.