On May 8, 2025, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost of Chicago was elected Pope Leo XIV, making history as the first American to lead the Catholic Church.
His election was met with praise from international leaders, including a statement from President Donald Trump, calling it a “Great Honor for our Country.”
“Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who was just named Pope. It is such an honor to realize that he is the first American Pope. What excitement, and what a Great Honor for our Country. I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV. It will be a very meaningful moment,” Trump said in a Facebook post last Friday, May 9.
Vice President JD Vance also shared his congratulations via X (formerly Twitter).
“Congratulations to Leo XIV, the first American Pope, on his election! I’m sure millions of American Catholics and other Christians will pray for his successful work leading the Church. May God bless him!”
But while Trump and Vance offered their praises, Pope Leo XIV – then Cardinal Prevost – had been a vocal critic of both leaders. According to AP News, Prevost’s final post as a cardinal was a repost of church journalist Rocco Palmo’s commentary on Trump’s meeting with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele at the White House.
Provost’s opposition against the Trump administration stretches back to July 2015, when he shared on X a Washington Post opinion by New York Archbishop Cardinal Timothy Dolan, which condemned Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric.
Following Trump’s victory in 2016, Prevost reposted a homily by Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez, which described the fear felt by immigrant families and their children, and a signal that the country “can do better.”
He also shared a Catholic publication quoting Democratic leaders who believed that Hillary Clinton’s lack of engagement with pro-life voters had contributed to her defeat.
In September 2017, several months into Trump’s presidency, Provost reposted a statement from activist Sister Helen Prejean, where she expressed support for Dreamers and called for a fair and normal immigration system.
Provost also shared a separate article by Palmo that highlighted criticisms from California bishops, who said Trump’s “bad hombres” remark fueled racism and nativism, and at the same time, warned against the repeal of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).
