President Trump has rejected Pope Leo XIV’s criticisms of global warfare, arguing that the pontiff’s “liberal” worldview ignores the nuclear threat posed by Iran.
President Donald Trump intensified his public feud with Pope Leo XIV on Thursday, dismissing the pontiff’s recent condemnation of global conflict as the rhetoric of someone who does not understand “the real world.” Following the Pope’s remarks in Cameroon where he criticized “the masters of war” and warned that the planet is being “ravaged by a handful of tyrants” Trump defended his administration’s military stance by asserting that “it’s a nasty world”and claiming the Pope’s pacifism would inadvertently allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon.
“The pope has to understand: Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. The world would be in great danger,” Trump stated at the White House, further labeling the first American pope as “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy.” While Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally declared she stands in “solidarity with Pope Leo” and urged leaders to pursue peaceful resolutions, Trump dismissed the need for a meeting to hash out their differences, remarking, “I don’t think it’s necessary.” The President concluded his critique by suggesting the pontiff’s position was politically motivated, adding, “If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican.”