Donald Trump on Sunday launched a wide-ranging and deeply personal attack on Pope Leo XIV, targeting the first American pope in history for his criticism of US military action in Iran and Venezuela, an extraordinary public spat between the leader of the free world and the leader of the Catholic Church.
Trump attacked Pope Leo XIV on social media in an unprecedented Broadside
The attack came in a lengthy post on Truth Social, which was quickly followed by remarks to reporters at Joint Base Andrews, where Trump arrived aboard Air Force One. In both cases, the president was unsparing.
“Pope Leo is WEAK on crime and terrible on foreign policy,” Trump wrote in what became the defining line of a tirade that spanned several hundred words and touched on immigration, nuclear weapons, Venezuela, COVID-era church closings and the pope’s brother.
Shortly after, Trump addressed reporters in an equally blunt manner. “I don’t think he’s doing a very good job,” he said, adding, “I’m not a fan of Pope Leo.”
The broadside marked a dramatic escalation in tensions between the White House and the Vatican, which began when Leo publicly condemned the US-led war in Iran.
What Triggered Trump’s Attack on Pope Leo XIV
The immediate provocation appears to have been a prayer service Leo presided over at St Peter’s Basilica on Sunday – the same day the United States and Iran began face-to-face talks in Pakistan during a fragile ceasefire. Without directly naming Trump or the United States, Leo condemned the “delusion of omnipotence” driving the conflict and demanded that political leaders stop hostilities and negotiate peace.
The tone and substance of the pope’s remarks were widely interpreted as aimed at Trump and senior U.S. officials, who have publicly boasted of U.S. military superiority and in several cases framed the war in explicitly religious terms.
Leo’s broader criticisms also included Trump’s immigration policies and his administration’s stance on Venezuela — foci the president addressed at length in his Truth Social post.
Pope Leo presided over an evening prayer service at St. Peter’s Basilica on the same day that the United States and Iran began face-to-face talks in Pakistan and amid a fragile ceasefire.
The historic first US-born pope did not mention the United States or President Donald Trump in his prayer, which was planned before the talks were announced. But Leo’s tone and message appeared aimed at Trump and US officials, who have boasted of America’s military superiority and justified the war in religious terms.
“Enough of the idolatry of self and money!” Leo said. “Enough shows of force! Enough war!”
In the early weeks of the war, the Chicago-born Leo was initially reluctant to publicly condemn the violence, limiting his comments to quiet appeals for peace and dialogue. However, Leo has intensified his criticism since Palm Sunday. And this week he said Trump’s threat to wipe out Iranian civilization was “truly unacceptable” and called for dialogue to prevail.
The Vatican is particularly concerned about spillovers from Israel’s war against Hezbollah in Lebanon, given the plight of Christian communities in the south.
Trump’s full tirade: Iran, Venezuela, COVID and the Pope’s brother
The post was notable both for its length and the range of complaints it cataloged. Trump accused Leo of defending Iran’s right to develop nuclear weapons, of opposing U.S. military action against Venezuela — which Trump described as “a country that is sending massive amounts of drugs to the United States and, worse, emptying their prisons, including murderers, drug dealers and killers into our country” — and of not speaking out when governments restricted religious gatherings during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“He talks about the ‘fear’ of the Trump administration, but he doesn’t mention the FEAR that the Catholic Church and all other Christian organizations had during COVID when they were arresting priests, ministers and everyone else for holding services even when they went outside and were ten and even twenty feet apart,” Trump wrote.
In a passage that drew immediate attention, Trump claimed credit for Leo’s elevation to the papacy. “If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican,” he wrote, arguing that the Church had chosen the American pope specifically to manage relations with his administration.
He then turned to Leo’s brother Louis and offered a stark comparison. “I like his brother Louis a lot more than him because Louis is all MAGA. He gets it and Leo doesn’t.”
Trump also criticized Leo for meeting with David Axelrod, a Democratic strategist and former adviser to Barack Obama, whom Trump called “a LOSER on the left who is one of those who wanted churchmen and clergy arrested.”
Trump says he was elected to act — and won’t be lectured by the Vatican
The core of Trump’s argument was the defense of his electoral mandate and the rejection of papal authority over American foreign policy.
“I don’t want a Pope criticizing the President of the United States because I’m doing exactly what I was elected to do, FROM THE SLIDE, setting record low crime rates and creating the greatest stock market in history,” he wrote.
He ended with a direct instruction to the head of the world’s largest Christian denomination: “Leo should get his act together as pope, use common sense, stop worrying about the radical left and focus on being a great pope, not a politician. It hurts him a lot, and more importantly, it hurts the Catholic Church.”
READ THE FULL TEXT OF DONALD TRUMP’S POST
Pope Leo is WEAK on crime and terrible on foreign policy. He talks about the “fear” of the Trump administration, but he doesn’t mention the FEAR that the Catholic Church and all other Christian organizations had during COVID when they were arresting priests, ministers and everyone else for holding services even when they went outside and were ten and even twenty feet apart. I much prefer his brother Louis to him because Louis is all MAGA. He will understand and Leo won’t! I don’t want a pope who thinks it’s okay for Iran to have a nuclear weapon. I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s terrible that America attacked Venezuela, a country that sent huge amounts of drugs to the United States, and worse, emptied their prisons, including murderers, drug dealers, and killers, into our country. And I don’t want a pope criticizing the president of the United States because I’m doing exactly what I was elected to do, which is by a landslide, setting record low crime rates and creating the greatest stock market in history. Leo should be grateful because, as everyone knows, he was a shocking surprise. He was not on any list of popes and the Church only put him there because he was an American and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald J. Trump. If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican. Unfortunately, Leo’s Weak on Crime, Weak on Nuclear Weapons doesn’t sit well with me, as does the fact that he hangs out with Obama sympathizers like David Axelrod, a LOSER from the left who is one of those who wanted the churchmen and clergy arrested. Leo should get his act together as pope, use common sense, stop worrying about the radical left and focus on being a great pope, not a politician. It hurts him greatly, and more importantly, it hurts the Catholic Church! President DONALD J. TRUMP
