Trump Says He Is 'not A Big Fan' Of 'weak' And 'terrible' Pope Leo

President Donald Trump sharply rebuked Pope Leo XIV successful remarks to reporters and in a societal media station connected Sunday, calling nan first American leader of nan Catholic religion “WEAK connected crime” and “terrible for Foreign Policy.”

“I don’t deliberation he’s doing a very bully job. He likes crime, I guess,” Trump told reporters astatine Joint Base Andrews erstwhile asked astir his lengthy Truth Social station Sunday nighttime criticizing nan pontiff.

“We don’t for illustration a pope that’s going to opportunity that it’s okay to person a atomic weapon. We don’t want a pope that says crime is okay successful our cities. I don’t for illustration it. I’m not a large instrumentality of Pope Leo,” Trump added.

The Vatican did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

The pope past week criticized Trump's nationalist threats to “wipe out” Iranian civilization, saying that “attacks connected civilian infrastructure is against world law,” and urging group to interaction leaders and congressmen to telephone for peace. He has urged Trump to extremity nan warfare successful Iran, and lamented successful his Easter message past week that nan world is “becoming indifferent” to violence. Leo had also antecedently criticized nan Trump administration’s migration policies.

“Leo should beryllium thankful because, arsenic everyone knows, he was a shocking surprise. He wasn’t connected immoderate database to beryllium Pope, and was only put location by nan Church because he was an American, and they thought that would beryllium nan champion measurement to woody pinch President Donald J. Trump. If I wasn’t successful nan White House, Leo wouldn’t beryllium successful nan Vatican,” Trump said successful a Truth Social post.

Trump hasn't ever been captious of Leo. At nan time, Trump called nan pope's May 2025 election "an grant for our country."

"It’s specified a awesome grant for our state to person an American pope. I mean, what greater grant could location be? That we were a small spot surprised, very happy. But conscionable a great, perfectly awesome honor," Trump said astatine nan time.

A March NBC News poll recovered U.S. voters viewed Pope Leo much favorably than nan president. 42% of respondents said they had a affirmative position of nan pope, while conscionable 8% had a antagonistic position of him. While 41% of respondents said they had a affirmative position of Trump, 53% said they had a antagonistic position of him.