ROME — Pope Francis on Sunday called plans by President-elect Donald Trump for the mass deportation of undocumented immigrants a “disgrace,” signaling the return of the rocky relationship that defined the pontiff’s ties with the first Trump White House.
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Speaking on the eve of Trump’s inauguration in an Italian television interview, Francis responded to a question about the incoming president’s immigration plans by saying: “This, if it’s true, will be a disgrace, because it will make poor unfortunates who have nothing foot the bill for [global] imbalances.
“That doesn’t work,” Francis said. “You don’t solve things that way. You just don’t.”
The comments provided the latest indication of a potential renewal of frictions between the Vatican and the next Trump White House.
Francis, who has made migrant rights a guiding light of his papacy, stands in stark contrast to Trump, who has called for sweeping changes in U.S. immigration policy to implement mass deportations. On Monday, the pontiff said he would pray that God grants Trump “wisdom, strength and protection” as he returns to the White House.
“It is my hope that under your leadership the American people will prosper and always strive to build a more just society, where there is no room for hatred, discrimination or exclusion,” the pope said.
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Yet the comments broadcast Sunday appeared to echo the kind of criticism Francis voiced during the U.S. presidential campaign in 2016. Then, speaking to reporters after a papal visit to Mexico, Francis described Trump as “not Christian” when asked about his plans for a border wall.
Subsequently, ties were strained between the Vatican and the first Trump administration, with the two standing at odds on a host of global issues, including migrant rights and the battle against global warming. The Vatican took umbrage at Trump administration criticism of a 2018 deal struck with China that gave authorities in Beijing a measure of input in the naming of Catholic bishops there. A visit between Trump and Francis in May 2017 resulted in a photo opportunity where a beaming Trump stood beside a visibly glum pontiff.
In 2018, Francis agreed with U.S. bishops who called the Trump administration policy of separating migrant children from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border “immoral” and “contrary to our Catholic values.” In other comments, Francis has appeared to reference Trump when denouncing the politics of division.
Ahead of the U.S. election in November, Francis described the choice for Americans as the “lesser of two evils” — noting Trump’s anti-migrant policies and the abortion rights stance of Vice President Kamala Harris. Ultimately, American Catholic voters backed Trump by a 20-point margin, according to exit polls, reversing a trend that saw Joe Biden, the nation’s second Catholic president, win Catholic voters by a five-point margin.
Eyebrows were raised last month when Trump announced that Francis critic Brian Burch would be the next U.S. ambassador to the Holy See. Burch, co-founder of the lay Catholic advocacy group Catholic Vote, said in 2023 that Francis had sown “confusion” by allowing priests to offer short blessings of people in same-sex couples. He also has criticized the pope’s removal of a conservative bishop in Texas who had openly criticized Francis.
This month, the Vatican named Cardinal Robert McElroy, one of the church’s leading liberal voices, to lead the prominent Washington-area archdiocese. McElroy for a decade headed the diocese in San Diego, standing out during those years as a champion of migrant rights. During a Jan. 6 news conference, he asked Americans to “hope and pray” that the next White House administration is successful in “helping to enhance our society, our country, our life and the whole of our nation.” But he acknowledged a possible “contrast” with the next administration’s priorities on immigration.
“The Catholic Church teaches that a nation has the right to control its borders, and our nation’s desire to do that is a legitimate effort,” he continued. “At the same time, we are called always to have a sense of the dignity of every human person. And thus, plans that have been talked about at some levels of having a wider, indiscriminate, massive deportation across the country would be something that would be incompatible with Catholic doctrine.”
Get concise answers to your questions. Try Ask The Post AI.Speaking on the eve of Trump’s inauguration in an Italian television interview, Francis responded to a question about the incoming president’s immigration plans by saying: “This, if it’s true, will be a disgrace, because it will make poor unfortunates who have nothing foot the bill for [global] imbalances.
“That doesn’t work,” Francis said. “You don’t solve things that way. You just don’t.”
The comments provided the latest indication of a potential renewal of frictions between the Vatican and the next Trump White House.
Francis, who has made migrant rights a guiding light of his papacy, stands in stark contrast to Trump, who has called for sweeping changes in U.S. immigration policy to implement mass deportations. On Monday, the pontiff said he would pray that God grants Trump “wisdom, strength and protection” as he returns to the White House.
“It is my hope that under your leadership the American people will prosper and always strive to build a more just society, where there is no room for hatred, discrimination or exclusion,” the pope said.
🌎
Follow World news
Yet the comments broadcast Sunday appeared to echo the kind of criticism Francis voiced during the U.S. presidential campaign in 2016. Then, speaking to reporters after a papal visit to Mexico, Francis described Trump as “not Christian” when asked about his plans for a border wall.
Subsequently, ties were strained between the Vatican and the first Trump administration, with the two standing at odds on a host of global issues, including migrant rights and the battle against global warming. The Vatican took umbrage at Trump administration criticism of a 2018 deal struck with China that gave authorities in Beijing a measure of input in the naming of Catholic bishops there. A visit between Trump and Francis in May 2017 resulted in a photo opportunity where a beaming Trump stood beside a visibly glum pontiff.
In 2018, Francis agreed with U.S. bishops who called the Trump administration policy of separating migrant children from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border “immoral” and “contrary to our Catholic values.” In other comments, Francis has appeared to reference Trump when denouncing the politics of division.
Ahead of the U.S. election in November, Francis described the choice for Americans as the “lesser of two evils” — noting Trump’s anti-migrant policies and the abortion rights stance of Vice President Kamala Harris. Ultimately, American Catholic voters backed Trump by a 20-point margin, according to exit polls, reversing a trend that saw Joe Biden, the nation’s second Catholic president, win Catholic voters by a five-point margin.
Eyebrows were raised last month when Trump announced that Francis critic Brian Burch would be the next U.S. ambassador to the Holy See. Burch, co-founder of the lay Catholic advocacy group Catholic Vote, said in 2023 that Francis had sown “confusion” by allowing priests to offer short blessings of people in same-sex couples. He also has criticized the pope’s removal of a conservative bishop in Texas who had openly criticized Francis.
This month, the Vatican named Cardinal Robert McElroy, one of the church’s leading liberal voices, to lead the prominent Washington-area archdiocese. McElroy for a decade headed the diocese in San Diego, standing out during those years as a champion of migrant rights. During a Jan. 6 news conference, he asked Americans to “hope and pray” that the next White House administration is successful in “helping to enhance our society, our country, our life and the whole of our nation.” But he acknowledged a possible “contrast” with the next administration’s priorities on immigration.
“The Catholic Church teaches that a nation has the right to control its borders, and our nation’s desire to do that is a legitimate effort,” he continued. “At the same time, we are called always to have a sense of the dignity of every human person. And thus, plans that have been talked about at some levels of having a wider, indiscriminate, massive deportation across the country would be something that would be incompatible with Catholic doctrine.”
