Trump quick to celebrate Leo XIV's election as the first U.S.-born pope

Globe and Mail

09-05-2025

Donald Trump was quick to celebrate the election of the first U.S.-born pope. But if Leo XIV's expressed political views are any indication, he may, like his predecessor, clash with the U.S. President over the latter's signature policy of mass-deporting migrants.
Shortly after Chicago-born Robert Francis Prevost was announced as the new pontiff, the White House posted photos of him overlooking St. Peter's Square with the text 'The First American Pope' and a congratulatory message from Mr. Trump saying he looked forward to meeting.
'What greater honour could there be? We're a little bit surprised but very happy,' Mr. Trump told reporters outside the White House Thursday afternoon. 'I was watching and they said, 'he's from America,' I said, 'that's great.' '
In the most recent activity on his verified X account, Leo, who was then a cardinal, amplified a post from Catholic commentator Rocco Palmo criticizing Mr. Trump over the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man deported to his native El Salvador against a court order.
In the post, Mr. Palmo accused Mr. Trump and Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele of laughing about the 'illicit deportation of a U.S. resident.'
In February, the account posted links to two op-eds on Catholic news websites rejecting Vice-President JD Vance's invocation of Catholic theology to justify deporting people. 'JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn't ask us to rank our love for others,' he wrote.
Such views track with those of the late Pope Francis, who said it was un-Christian to build walls to stop immigration and, earlier this year, criticized Mr. Vance's views in a letter to U.S. bishops.
The Vice-President, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, made no reference to the new Pope's politics Thursday.
'I'm sure millions of American Catholics and other Christians will pray for his successful work leading the Church,' posted Mr. Vance, who met with Francis at the Vatican the day before the late pontiff died last month.
Prime Minister Mark Carney, meanwhile, seemed to nod to an ideological cadence with some of the Pope's ideals, saying he hoped to work with Leo on advancing 'solidarity, justice, and sustainability' around the world.
'At a time of profound global challenges, may his pontificate be marked by wisdom, discernment, a deep commitment to common good, and dignity of all,' he said in a statement.
Leo, who has lived between the United States, Peru and Italy, is the first North American to become Pope and only the second – after the medieval Adrian IV – to come from the Anglosphere.
Former U.S. president Barack Obama congratulated his 'fellow Chicagoan' on X. 'We will pray for him as he begins the sacred work of leading the Catholic Church and setting an example for so many, regardless of faith.'
Wrote Joe Biden, a lifelong Catholic who attended weekly mass throughout his presidency: 'Habemus papam – May God bless Pope Leo XIV of Illinois.'
Reverend Peter Donohue, president of Villanova University in Pennsylvania, where Leo received an undergraduate degree in mathematics in 1977, said in a statement that the new Pope was 'known for his humility, gentle spirit, prudence and warmth.'
The Pope's history in his home country, however, also includes a connection to the child molestation scandals that have rocked the Church. He came under fire for allowing a priest accused of molesting several boys to live in a Chicago building near an elementary school.
According to documents obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times and The Pillar, a Catholic news site, in 2000, he approved a plan to have James Ray live at St. John Stone Friary, half a block from St. Thomas the Apostle School, which was never told of his presence in the neighbourhood. Father Ray was moved from the building in 2002.
The new pontiff's political views appear to range from right-wing Catholic dogma to more progressive humanitarianism.
He has opposed abortion, LGBTQ rights and ordaining women. In one 2012 speech, he criticized the 'homosexual lifestyle' as being against Biblical teachings. At a 2023 Vatican news conference, he said allowing women to become priests would 'make a new problem.' And in Peru, he spoke out against 'the promotion of gender ideology' in schools.
At other times, he has expressed support for environmentalism, one of Francis's signature causes, calling for a 'relationship of reciprocity' with nature. In 2015, his account posted online: 'It's time to end the death penalty.' After the 2017 massacre at a Las Vegas music festival, he retweeted Democratic Senator Chris Murphy's demands for more gun control, which referred to 'cowardice' by pro-gun Republicans.
In 2020, Leo's account posted about George Floyd, the Black Minneapolis man whose murder by a white police officer touched off mass protests. 'We need to hear more from leaders in the Church, to reject racism and seek justice,' he wrote.
For now, it remains unclear what role Leo's political leanings, and their stark divergence from those of the man leading his home country, will play in his pontificate.
Some of the President's supporters were swift to weigh in. Influencer Laura Loomer, who has informally advised Mr. Trump, branded Leo a 'WOKE MARXIST POPE.' Conservative pundit Megyn Kelly wondered: 'Is it too much to hope that some 20-year-old ran the new pope's X account and he never looked at it?'
Mr. Trump, who attended Francis's funeral, had earlier adopted a blasé attitude towards the conclave that critics felt verged on blasphemous. Over the weekend, his social-media accounts posted an AI-generated image of himself in papal vestments.
When asked about it, the President said he had 'no idea where it came from' but insisted 'the Catholics loved it' and anyone who was offended 'can't take a joke.'