Pope Leo XIV and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were diplomatic after their recent meeting. But the conflict between the Vatican and the White House isn’t going to fade away. Both sides seem disinclined to reconsider their views on immigration, which are miles apart. While Catholic leaders have, in recent decades, been drawn toward Republicans by the abortion issue, President Donald Trump’s wariness about it has weakened that force.
And then, of course, there is the Iran war, which does not show signs of ending, despite the administration sometimes insisting it’s over. Leo’s opposition to the war isn’t some idiosyncrasy: It’s consistent with John Paul II’s opposition to the Gulf War and the Iraq War. But Trump isn’t going to take papal opposition in stride, as his predecessors did, and no amount of visits from Rubio will preclude the possibility of another presidential social-media eruption.