Trump Attacks the Pope for the Second Day, and Meloni Defends Him. The World Reacts While the Catholic Vice-President of the USA Supports Him

(ZENIT News / Rome, 04.14.2026).- Relations between the Holy See and the US presidency have entered a phase of open tension following a series of public statements that, in just a few days, have escalated from political criticism to a global verbal confrontation. At the center of this controversy are Pope Leo XIV, the first American Pontiff in history, and President Donald Trump, whose words have triggered a chain reactions both within and outside the ecclesial realm.

The episode began on April 12, when Trump posted a message on social media calling the Pope «weak» on crime and «terrible» on foreign policy. The intervention appeared to be a response to the Pontiff’s repeated calls for peace, particularly regarding the situation in Iran and other international conflicts. Just hours later, the Pope, during a meeting with journalists aboard the plane taking him to Africa, avoided direct confrontation but reaffirmed the core of his teachings: the condemnation of war and the promotion of dialogue between nations

Far from toning down, the US President reiterated his criticism the following day, April 13, before the media, ruling out any apology. He argued his disagreement with the Pope’s positions on the Iranian nuclear program and defended his own course of international policy. When the press asked Trump if he would apologize to the Pope, Trump responded emphatically: «No, no, because Pope Leo XIV said things that are wrong. He was against what I’m doing regarding Iran, and you can’t have a nuclear Iran. Pope Leo XIV wouldn’t be happy with the final result.»

 

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Meanwhile, Vice-President JD Vance, a Catholic, publicly suggested in a Fox News interview that the Vatican should limit itself to religious matters and leave the definition of public policy to the Government: «I certainly believe that in some cases it would be better for the Vatican to stick to matters of morality, to stick to matters of what is happening in the Catholic Church and let the President dictate American public policy.»

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