The Pope Appears Uneasy With Trump Immigration Policies

Months before Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost became the first American pope, a social media account under his name expressed criticism of Vice President JD Vance, sharing an article that called the vice president’s interpretation of Christian doctrine “wrong.”

The piece, published in The National Catholic Reporter, was a rebuttal to Mr. Vance’s interpretation of a Catholic teaching that he had used to defend the Trump administration’s deportation policies.

The post on X, which the account shared in February, was one of several that highlighted articles criticizing the Trump administration’s positions on immigration.

In April, the account under Cardinal Prevost’s name shared commentary from a Catholic writer who asked whether President Trump and President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador saw “the suffering” caused by their immigration policies.

“Is your conscious not disturbed?” a Catholic church analyst, Rocco Palmo, wrote. “How can you stay quiet?”

While The New York Times could not independently confirm whether Cardinal Prevost ran the account — or if it was operated by a staff member — the account was connected to a phone number and email address believed to be tied to him. Nearly all the posts, which date to 2011, shared articles, statements and comments made by other church leaders — not by the cardinal himself.