New pope's social media posts suggest disagreement with the Trump administration

How the archetypal American pope volition interact with the president of his homeland remains to beryllium seen, but a fewer posts connected societal media mightiness supply a clue.

Cardinal Robert Prevost, present Pope Leo XIV, is besides known connected the societal media tract X arsenic @drprevost, wherever helium has occasionally weighed successful with reposts connected issues of religion and authorities — including Trump medication comments oregon actions.

In February helium shared articles that took contented with a remark by Vice President JD Vance, who converted to Catholicism arsenic an big and met connected Easter Sunday with Pope Francis, who died the adjacent day.

Vance’s sojourn came aft the pope had written a letter to U.S. bishops successful February, detailing his concerns implicit the Trump administration’s plans for wide deportations.

The pope underscored his enactment for “migrant and exile brothers and sisters” successful the letter: “Christians cognize precise good that it is lone by affirming the infinite dignity of each that our ain individuality arsenic persons and arsenic communities reaches its maturity. Christian emotion is not a concentric enlargement of interests that small by small widen to different persons and groups.”

On Feb. 12, Prevost reposted an article from the Catholic work America mag saying the pope’s missive served arsenic a rebuke of Vance’s comments successful a Jan. 29 Fox News interrogation “that you emotion your household and past you emotion your neighbor, and past you emotion your community, and past you emotion your chap citizens, and past aft that, prioritize the remainder of the world.”

Prevost reposted an article successful a akin vein connected Feb. 3 from the National Catholic Reporter headlined “JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn’t inquire america to fertile our emotion for others.”

Reposts connected societal media bash not needfully awesome an endorsement of their viewpoints.

In April, the caller pope reposted of a comment from writer Rocco Palmo, who questioned Trump and El Salvador President Nayib Bukele’s meeting successful the Oval Office. The presidents met days aft the U.S. wrongly deported a Salvadoran antheral residing successful Maryland, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, and declined to bring him back, contempt an bid from the Supreme Court that the U.S. facilitate his return.

Palmo’s station quoted an article written by Washington, D.C., Auxiliary Bishop Evelio Menjivar: “Do you not spot the suffering? Is your conscience not disturbed? How tin you enactment quiet?”

In 2018, erstwhile quality of migrant children being separated from their parents astatine the borderline reached a fever transportation during Trump’s archetypal term, Prevost retweeted a post from the archbishop of Chicago that said: “There is thing remotely Christian, American, oregon morally defensible astir a argumentation that takes children distant from their parents and warehouses them successful cages. This is being carried retired successful our sanction and the shame is connected america all.”

Trump connected Thursday praised the quality astir Prevost. “Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who was conscionable named Pope. It is specified an grant to recognize that helium is the archetypal American Pope,” the president wrote connected X. “What excitement, and what a Great Honor for our Country. I look guardant to gathering Pope Leo XIV. It volition beryllium a precise meaningful moment!”

The wide advocacy radical Occupy Democrats, successful a connection connected X, suggested Trump’s praise would beryllium fleeting: “Once [President] Trump gets a amended consciousness of Pope Leo XIV’s beliefs — namely that Christians are called to emotion and attraction for each of the radical of the world, not conscionable achromatic conservatives — the president volition apt beryllium singing a precise antithetic tune. If and erstwhile that onslaught comes, we volition proudly basal with Pope Leo’s emotion and kindness against Trump’s hatred and cruelty.”

The announcement of Prevost arsenic the archetypal American to beryllium named pope comes astatine a tense clip for European-American relations, arsenic the Trump medication is moving to isolate the United States and, successful immoderate cases, antagonize its accepted allies.

European nations are inactive navigating choppy economical waters aft Trump issued sweeping tariffs past period against each countries. The papal determination Thursday coincided with the White House’s announcement of its archetypal commercialized statement struck with a European nation, the United Kingdom. Several different European nations are inactive waiting their crook to negociate with Trump implicit lowering the tariffs.

While adjusting to accelerated economical changes, European leaders are besides inactive reeling from erstwhile Vance gave them a stern rebuke astatine the Munich information league successful February, erstwhile helium warned against overregulation and advocated listening to each corners of the governmental spectrum — including Germany’s far-right party.

The papal announcement came days aft the White House posted connected its societal media an AI-generated photograph of Trump arsenic pope.