Vice President JD Vance has welcomed Pope Leo XIV’s move to downplay their recent diplomatic clash, thanking the pontiff for clarifying that his remarks on peace were not intended as a personal debate with President Trump.
Vice President JD Vance expressed his gratitude on Saturday after Pope Leo XIV sought to de-escalate a week-long public feud with President Donald Trump. Speaking during his 11-day tour of Africa, the pontiff clarified that his recent criticisms of those who “manipulate religion” were written weeks in advance and were not intended as a direct response to the president. “It was looked at as if I was trying to debate the president, which is not my interest at all,” the Pope stated, emphasizing his focus on the gospel rather than political sparring.
The rift initially emerged when Pope Leo XIV labeled Trump’s threat to target Iran’s “whole civilization” as “truly unacceptable.” The president had countered on Truth Social by calling the Pope “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy,” while senior officials like Border Czar Tom Homan told the pontiff to “leave politics alone.” Vance, the first high-ranking U.S. official to meet with the American-born Pope in 2025, had previously warned the cleric to “be careful” when opining on theology, but adopted a more conciliatory tone following the Vatican’s clarification.
In a social media post, Vance noted that while real disagreements are inevitable, the media often “gins up conflict” that is more complicated in reality. He acknowledged the Pope’s duty to speak on moral issues while asserting that the administration must apply those principles in a “messy world.” President Trump also appeared to soften his stance toward the end of the week, stating he has a “right to disagree” with the Pope but is not actively fighting him, even as the administration remains concerned about approval ratings among Catholic voters