'Witches' And 'Magic Believers' Plan Midnight Ritual To Cast Spell On Donald Trump

NEW YORK, NY — Spiritual opponents of President Donald Trump are trying out a new strategy in their resistance movement: black magic. On Friday night, Trump's magical detractors will take part in a nationwide ritual to cast a spell on the president and "all those who abet him."

As the clock strikes midnight on the East Coast, witches and other practitioners of magic will work together to place a "binding" spell on Trump, according to Baltimore-based writer, speaker and self-described magical thinker Michael Hughes.

Hughes and a group of people from various magical backgrounds have been working to construct a spell that would, in theory, slow down the actions of the Trump administration.

"A lot of people in a number of magical groups and a number of individuals were trying to craft this particular kind of spell in reaction to what the Trump administration was doing," Hughes told Patch.

Hughes said the idea has since "blown up beyond what I could have even possibly imagined."

His plans had attracted some major attention by Friday afternoon. As of this writing, a Facebook page announcing the ritual had been followed by more than 6,500 people. Singer Lana Del Rey reportedly planned to get involved.

Naysayers may doubt the effectiveness of the ritual. But Hughes told Patch he sees it as protected by the freedom to exercise one's beliefs in America.

"There’s room for everybody. There are coordinated Christian prayers trying to oppose this spell, and that’s great," Hughes said. "Thankfully, it’s still a free country, and we can still practice our beliefs no matter how kooky other people think they are."

The purpose of the ritual isn't to harm Trump, he said, but simply to prevent the president from causing any further harm.

In the end, the spell is a "bind," Hughes said — not a curse or a hex. The difference? A bind prevents the spell's target from doing harm, whereas hexes and curses seek to inflict harm.

"In other words, this is not the equivalent of magically punching a Nazi; rather, it is ripping the bullhorn from his hands, smashing his phone so he can’t tweet, tying him up, and throwing him in a dark basement where he can’t hurt anyone," Hughes said in a Medium post.

The ritual calls for the use of an unflattering photo of Trump; the "tower" tarot card; and two candles, including an orange one to represent the president himself. If an orange candle can't be located, a baby carrot can be used to symbolize Trump as well, according to the Facebook page detailing the ritual.

Steps of the ritual include lighting the candles, chanting a spell — then burning Trump's photo. Acceptable variances also include using Trump's reality TV catchphrase "You're fired" or throwing in a piece of fool's gold.

Friday night's ritual isn't tied to any one school of magic or spirituality, Hughes told Patch.

"This is not holy writ here. This is a project that is meant to be open-sourced," he said. "It is meant to be embraced and altered to fit your particular perspective."

Hughes is calling for the ritual to be repeated on each waning crescent moon until Trump is "removed from office."

There have been some negative reactions among religious groups. A group called the Christian Nationalist Alliance — a group that believes "America can only be made great again" by following the "three C's" of Christianity, culture and capitalism — has planned a mass prayer to counter the ritual, setting the stage for an epic spiritual battle over Trump's soul.

"This is a declaration of spiritual war and it requires a response. As such the Christian Nationalist Alliance is announcing a Day of Prayer on each of these days. We beseech all Christian soldiers to answer this call to action," said a post on the group's website.

Photo by Gage Skidmore/Flickr