Political analysts and observers thrashed a MAGA Republican on Wednesday after he told Pope Leo XIV to "stay out of politics."
Speaking to a reporter from the Meidas Network, Rep. Troy Nehls (R-TX) said the Pope needs to "keep his business in leading his flock" and "stay out of the political arena." Nehls' comments came after President Donald Trump attacked the Pope on social media, calling him "weak" on crime and "terrible on foreign policy." Trump has also said that the Pope should not criticize the U.S. president or his policies.
"He doesn't need to be getting involved in the political arena," Nehls said. "Go lead your church, but stay out of the politics. We didn't elect the Pope to be our president, or to be anything else. So, just keep his nose in the church's business and stay out of the political arena."
Nehls' comments sparked backlash on social media.
"Siri, show me a cultist thug unfit for public office or public life," Norman Ornstein, a contributing editor at The Atlantic, posted on X.
"[Expletive] you, pedophile protector," Susanna Lopez, a retired opinion columnist, posted on X.
"This is the same anti-Catholicism that drove the second KKK, which had 5 million members," economist Tony Annett posted on X.
"It’ll probably blow over but tensions between conservative Catholics and evangelical Protestants within the Republican Party are always right under the surface. Trump attacking Pope Leo (who is more popular w/ Catholic [conservatives] than Francis was) will exacerbate that," attorney Blake Allen posted on X.