Pope Leo XIV greets U.S. Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance in St. Peter's Basilica, following his inaugural Mass, at the Vatican, May 18, 2025. REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Pope Leo XIV issued a Donald Trump putdown while two of the president’s key allies sat watching from the pews.
Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio both made the trip to the Vatican to witness the new pontiff’s inaugural mass Sunday.
As they watched, the pope — who has criticized the policies of both Vance and Trump before — took a dig many believe was aimed directly at Trump.
“In this our time, we still see too much discord, too many wounds caused by hatred, violence, prejudice, the fear of difference, and an economic paradigm that exploits the Earth’s resources and marginalizes the poorest,” the pope said.
And he blasted efforts to “capture others by force, by religious propaganda or by means of power,” according to The New York Times.
As he spoke, Rubio and Vance watched silently from the pews.
The pope also took aim at anti-immigrant action being taken around the world, including in the U.S.
Trump has made harsh anti-immigrant policies central to his second term in the White House, ramping up deportations and even sending many to a brutal prison in El Salvador.
He also constantly uses his press conferences and social media presence to issue direct attacks on those who oppose him.
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