President Trump and Pope Leo XIV are engaged in a heated public feud that began after the Pope denounced U.S. involvement in the Iran war, prompting Trump to respond with a social media diatribe labeling the U.S.-born pontiff “weak.”
Leo dismissed Trump’s insults on Monday, telling reporters “I have no fear of the Trump administration.”
Trump claimed in a social media post Sunday night that Leo supports open borders and even went so far as to take credit for his election by the College of Cardinals.
“I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s terrible that America attacked Venezuela,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “And I don’t want a Pope who criticizes the President of the United States because I’m doing exactly what I was elected, IN A LANDSLIDE, to do,” Trump continued.
“He wasn’t on any list to be Pope, and was only put there by the Church because he was an American, and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald J. Trump,” Trump wrote. “If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican.”
Asked by reporters about the post after landing at Joint Base Andrews Sunday night, Trump called Leo “a very liberal person.”
“I don’t think he’s doing a very good job. He likes crime, I guess,” Trump said. “I am not a fan of Pope Leo.”
Leo was asked about the president’s comments by reporters on Monday while embarking on a ten-day trip to Africa. “I’m not afraid of the Trump administration or of speaking out loudly about the message of the Gospel, which is what the Church works for,” Leo said.
“I don’t want to get into a debate with him,” Leo added. “I don’t think that the message of the Gospel is meant to be abused in the way that some people are doing.”
Leo has been outspoken against the war with Iran, writing “God does not bless any conflict” on X.
“Anyone who is a disciple of Christ, the Prince of Peace, is never on the side of those who once wielded the sword and today drop bombs,” he added. “Military action will not create space for freedom or times of #Peace, which comes only from the patient promotion of coexistence and dialogue among peoples.”
The back-and-forth between Trump and Leo kicked off after Leo held a prayer vigil at the Vatican on Saturday while US. and Iranian officials were negotiating in Pakistan. During the vigil Leo urged Catholics around the world to condemn the war in Iran as unjust. While he didn’t mention Trump by name during his remarks, Leo did condemn leaders who he said were becoming “increasingly unpredictable and aggressive.”
“Those who pray do not kill or threaten with death,” Leo said. “Death enslaves those who have turned their backs on the living God, turning themselves and their own power into a mute, blind, and deaf idol — to which they sacrifice every value, demanding that the whole world bend its knee.”
Leo is the first American-born pope, hailing from Chicago, Illinois. He was elected May 2025 to replace Pope Francis.
Shortly before Leo’s election, Trump posted an AI-generated image of himself as the Pope. Then, on Sunday, Trump posted a similar image that depicted him as a Jesus-like figure. The president’s Sunday post, however, has since been deleted, following intense criticism, in which many of his own followers referred to the image as “blasphemous.”
Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran continue after marathon 21-hour talks over the weekend ended without any significant breakthroughs. Vice President J.D. Vance called the negotiations “substantive.”
“That’s the good news,” Vance said. “The bad news is that we have not reached an agreement, and I think that’s bad news for Iran much more than it’s bad news for the United States of America. So, we go back to the United States having not come to an agreement.”
The U.S. began blockading the Strait of Hormuz Monday morning as part of a push to increase pressure on the leaders in Tehran.