United States President Donald Trump has refused to back down from a sharp public confrontation with Pope Leo XIV, telling CBS News that the American-born pontiff is “wrong on the issues” and should stay out of politics, while the Pope has responded that he has “no fear of the Trump administration” and will continue to speak out against war.
Trump confirmed in a phone interview that he had watched a “60 Minutes” segment highlighting Pope Leo’s disapproval of mass deportations and the Iran war before posting an extended attack on the pontiff on his Truth Social platform late Sunday.
In the post, Trump called Leo “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” adding that he did not want “a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon.” He also claimed Leo had been made Pope solely because he was American, asserting: “If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican.”
Trump told CBS News he had no plans to call the Pope and said he had “no idea” whether Leo would visit the United States during his presidency. When asked directly, he gave a firm “no” to apologising.
Pope Leo, speaking to journalists aboard the papal plane as he began an 11-day trip to Africa, pushed back firmly. “I am not a politician,” he said. “I have no fear of the Trump administration, or speaking out loudly of the message of the Gospel, which is what I believe I am here to do.”
Leo’s criticism of Trump is not new. Shortly before a ceasefire in Iran was negotiated on April 8, Trump threatened to destroy Iranian civilisation, a comment Leo called “truly unacceptable.” The Pope also issued a call to action, urging people to contact political leaders and congressmen to demand they work for peace.
The row deepened further after Trump posted an artificial intelligence generated image on Truth Social on Sunday night that depicted him in a white robe appearing to heal a man, in what many viewers immediately compared to depictions of Jesus Christ. The image showed Trump placing a hand on a man’s head in a scene resembling a healing, posted on Orthodox Easter.
By Monday morning, Trump deleted the image. He told reporters he thought it depicted him as a doctor. “I thought it was me as a doctor and had to do with Red Cross,” he said, denying it was a religious depiction. He later told CBS News: “Normally I don’t like doing that, but I didn’t want to have anybody be confused. People were confused.”
The backlash cut across political lines. The Archbishop of Las Vegas praised Leo for speaking truth to power, while the US Conference of Catholic Bishops said the Pope “is not his rival” and is “the Vicar of Christ who speaks from the truth of the Gospel.” Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a Trump ally, also described the attack on the Pope as “unacceptable.”
Former Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a one-time close Trump ally, also condemned him, writing that Trump “posted this picture of himself as if he is replacing Jesus” and that she “completely denounced” it.
Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic, said in a Fox News interview that disagreements between US leaders and the Vatican were “not particularly newsworthy,” but added that in some cases it “would be best for the Vatican to stick to matters of morality.”
Pope Leo is currently on an 11-day tour of four African countries, beginning in Algeria, and has said he will continue to promote peace and dialogue regardless of the political pressure.
