Trump Accuses Pope Leo Of Endangering Catholics Ahead Of Marco Rubio Vatican Visit

U.S. President Donald Trump reignited his public attacks on Pope Leo, accusing him of “endangering” Catholics and claiming he supports Iran obtaining nuclear weapons, days before Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to visit the Vatican. In an interview with conservative commentator Hugh Hewitt, Trump said the pope “would rather talk about the fact that it’s OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon,” and added, “I think he’s endangering a lot of Catholics and a lot of people.” Pope Leo pushed back in a message calling for peace, and in remarks to reporters he said the Catholic Church “for years has spoken out against all nuclear weapons, so there is no doubt there.” The dispute has also been framed around Leo’s criticism of war with Iran generally and Trump’s threats of mass civilian strikes, as Rubio prepares to meet the pontiff.

Ahead of the Vatican visit, U.S. ambassador to the Holy See Brian Burch said Rubio expects a “frank” meeting with Pope Leo and described the goal as “fraternity and authentic dialogue.” Burch told journalists that Rubio is coming “so that the U.S. and the Vatican can “better understand each other, and to work through, if there are differences, certainly to talk through that.” Trump’s latest potshots were delivered to Hugh Hewitt, who asked about the pope’s stance, and Trump said the pope “endangering a lot of Catholics and a lot of people.” Rubio, a practicing Catholic, told reporters at the White House that Trump’s criticisms were rooted in opposition to Iran potentially obtaining a nuclear weapon, which he said could be used against millions of Catholics and other Christians. With the pope scheduled to meet Rubio on Thursday at the Apostolic Palace, the tension has become a live diplomatic test for the U.S. secretary of state’s trip.

The Vatican trip is also being positioned around religious freedom and other issues that Rubio has said he will raise, with a focus on “libertà religiosa minacciata” and “un particolare focus sull’Africa.” Domani reported that Rubio said that on “giovedì 7 maggio” he will speak with Leone XIV about religious freedom, and it also said the agenda includes Cuba, described as “la patria culturale di Rubio.” The stakes are sharpened by the continuing clash over Iran, where Trump’s comments have been met with Leo’s insistence that the Church’s mission is “to preach the Gospel, to preach peace.” In parallel, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Trump’s remarks were “neither acceptable nor helpful to the cause of peace,” while reaffirming support for “every action and word of Pope Leo.” As Rubio heads to Rome with a meeting planned at the Vatican and additional meetings in Italy, the sources portray the trip as a chance to manage a widening dispute between Washington and the Holy See.