JD Vance Finally Addresses His Disagreement With New Pope On Immigration

'You have to be able to hold two ideas in your head at the same time'

Pope Leo XIV: The right leader for a church in crisis



American Catholics didn't want an American pope.

The idea was off the table because everyone told them it was unrealistic. How could the world's cardinals go into the conclave and give the world a pope from the world's only superpower?

Although the media have hyped Pope Leo as a Francis protégé, expect the American pope to operate differently.

Impossible.

But God has a way of making the impossible a reality.

The choice of Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as the new leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics almost echoes what Donald Trump said in his recent inaugural address. "In America, the impossible is what we do best."

For Pope Leo XIV, however, the real work is just beginning.

He was officially inaugurated yesterday, on Pope St. John Paul's 105th birthday. Now the first American-born pope must begin mending the Vatican's strained relationship with the United States, which was left in tatters by his predecessor, Pope Francis.

Francis, who died on April 21 after a lengthy illness, visited the United States only once. During his 12-year pontificate, his disdain for the home of the free was palpable.

The late pope became a worldwide media darling in 2013 after taking a soft stance on homosexual behavior. “If a person is gay and seeks God and has goodwill, who am I to judge him?”

Francis also drew the ire of American Catholics in 2021 when he imposed restrictions on the Traditional Latin Mass, which sharply contrasted with Pope Benedict XVI, who had loosened restrictions during his pontificate. Many were perplexed because the TLM attracted young Catholics and represented a growing segment of the church worldwide.

Francis regularly waded into American politics. In 2016, he challenged President Donald Trump’s policy of securing the U.S.-Mexico border by celebrating Mass in the border city of Ciudad Juárez.

Hours later, aboard the papal plane, he denounced Trump personally. “A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian,” he said. The irony, which most of us caught, was that he was returning to Vatican City, which has 40-foot walls.

The pope stepped up his criticism earlier this year in a letter to American bishops, knocking Trump’s treatment of migrants and claiming that deportations violate the “dignity of many men and women, and of entire families.”

Before last week’s conclave, the new pontiff criticized the Trump administration’s immigration policy. His final X post before being elected was a retweet of a message from Philadelphia-based Catholic commentator Rocco Palmo, who on April 14 blasted Trump’s agreement with El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele regarding the deportation of illegal migrants.

“As Trump & Bukele use Oval to [laugh emoji] Feds’ illicit deportation of a US resident… once an undoc-ed Salvadorean himself, now-DC [auxiliary bishop] Evelio [Menjivar] asks, ‘Do you not see the suffering? Is your conscience not disturbed? How can you stay quiet?’” the post reads.

The Pope’s old X account @drprevost has been deleted. However, once the honeymoon period is over, Catholics should expect the new Holy Father to wade into politics as Francis did. I suspect Pope Leo will be far more diplomatic and nuanced than his predecessor in the political arena.

Pope Leo must also mend fences with American Catholics who prefer the Traditional Latin Mass. Under Pope Benedict XVI’s pontificate, TLM attendance boomed, particularly among young Catholics. The German pontiff loosened restrictions on the old form of liturgy, only to see Francis restrict its practice.

Pope Leo XIV buoyed the hopes of Latin Mass adherents last week when he began his Sunday Angelus message by singing the “Regina Caeli” (Queen of Heaven) in Latin. The new pope has expressed support for the Traditional Latin Mass, emphasizing the importance of maintaining sacred rituals and the Church's rich heritage. His leadership is seen as a continuation of efforts to balance modernity with traditional practices in Catholic worship.

While rebuilding the Holy See’s relationship with the United States must be a top priority for Leo, he has bigger fish to fry. The pope has inherited a financial mess, including a pension time bomb that is worse than expected.

The Vatican has faced significant budget deficits for decades. The recent budget shortfall of $94.22 million and ongoing financial scandals persist despite Francis’s reform efforts.

The 69-year-old Chicago native will also need to grapple with the ongoing homosexual influence within the Vatican and in the American Church, as well as the decline of Catholicism in Europe, and heal worldwide divisions in the wake of Francis’ 12-year pontificate.

Although the media have hyped Pope Leo as a Francis protégé, expect the American pope to operate differently. His decades of service in Latin America, leadership in the Augustinian order, and two years at the Vatican have given him the credibility to implement the reforms the Church has desperately needed for the past two decades.

The challenges facing the new pope may seem impossible, but then again, so was his election.

Russia-Ukraine talks to begin ‘immediately,’ Trump says after call with Putin



President Donald Trump stated Monday that Russia and Ukraine will “immediately” begin negotiation talks.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump revealed some details regarding a two-hour call he had with Russian President Vladimir Putin, adding that the conversation went “very well.”

'I think it’s a place that both sides would be comfortable going.'

He announced that Russia and Ukraine would immediately begin talks to reach a ceasefire deal and ultimately agree on an “END to the War.”

“The conditions for that will be negotiated between the two parties, as it can only be, because they know details of a negotiation that nobody else would be aware of. The tone and spirit of the conversation were excellent. If it wasn’t, I would say so now, rather than later,” Trump wrote.

RELATED: Russia, Ukraine resume talks for first time in years — all thanks to Trump

— (@)

The president noted that Putin expressed interest in engaging in “largescale TRADE with the United States when this catastrophic ‘bloodbath’ is over.”

“There is a tremendous opportunity for Russia to create massive amounts of jobs and wealth,” Trump continued. “Its potential is UNLIMITED. Likewise, Ukraine can be a great beneficiary on Trade, in the process of rebuilding its Country.”

Trump further noted that the Vatican had agreed to host the negotiation talks.

RELATED: Trump reveals Ukraine ceasefire challenges and who he blames most

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Vice President JD Vance, and Pope Leo XIV. Photo by Simone Risoluti Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty Images

On Saturday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio also suggested that the Vatican could be the venue for the discussions.

“I think it’s a place that both sides would be comfortable going,” Rubio stated. “So we’ll talk about all of that and obviously always grateful to the Vatican for their willingness to play this constructive and positive role.”

The Vatican did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

First American Pope Leo XIV Voted in Republican Primaries, Records Show

Pope Leo XIV, formerly known as Robert Prevost, voted in several Republican primaries before being elevated as successor to Pope Francis, election records obtained by the Washington Free Beacon show.

The post First American Pope Leo XIV Voted in Republican Primaries, Records Show appeared first on .

Francis was my pope, right or wrong



On Monday, April 21, Pope Francis passed away at his residence in the Vatican.

Formerly the Cardinal Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Jorge Mario Bergoglio ascended to the papal throne on March 13, 2013. He took the name Francis after St. Francis of Assisi, the medieval founder of the Franciscan Order. Francis’s reign as supreme pontif lasted 12 years.

The Catholic Church is far older than the liberal notion of egalitarianism, just as it is far older than the modern conception of a political 'left' and 'right.'

Before we move on to speculating about the next pope, I think it is appropriate to reflect on Pope Francis and the nature of his office.

A hard time for traditionalists

As an American conservative and a traditionalist Catholic, I asked myself how I felt inclined to reflect on the legacy of a pope regarded by many in my circles to have been a staunch liberal.

Pope Francis’ reign — particularly the last four years — was a hard time for my community. I grew up attending the Traditional Latin Mass. My love for the traditional Mass and Sacraments was a deciding factor in my decision to abandon my career plans and spend a year in seminary discerning the priesthood.

When Francis imposed severe restrictions on the celebration of the Latin Mass, I was, like many others, deeply hurt. Many of my friends and fellow community members felt that the Holy Father had joined the outside world in persecuting faithful Catholics who were drawn to the ancient liturgies of our ancestors.

Unquestioned loyalty

I agreed with them. I felt (and still feel) that the Vatican chose mistakenly and unfairly to persecute some of the most faithful, devoted communities in the Church. I also agreed with them that these persecutions — no matter how severe they might become — would never cause us to question our obedience and loyalty to the pope responsible for them.

Similarly, my disagreements with Pope Francis on political issues such as mass migration, capital punishment, incarceration, policies surrounding COVID-19, and his openness to globalism (to say nothing of the more Catholic insider issues such as fiducia supplicans and fratelli tutti) never caused me to question my obedience to him.

I loved Pope Francis as a son loves his father, and I never questioned my fidelity and loyalty to him as pope. The reasons for this loyalty are very simple: I am a Catholic, and he was the pope. No other reason is needed.

Beyond left and right

For a Catholic, his relationship to the pope and to the Church is in no way contingent upon the modern concepts of left and right, liberal and conservative. It is far more integral to his person than such labels can possibly be.

It does not surprise me that this sort of relationship seems odd to many people. In this country, we tend to have an egalitarian view of leadership. We believe (rightly, in the case of the United State government) that our leaders represent us; they work for us. If they act badly or make a mistake, they ought to be criticized or ridiculed in the same way anyone else would be.

The Catholic Church is far older than the liberal notion of egalitarianism, just as it is far older than the modern conception of a political “left” and “right.”

Christ's man on Earth

Our populist view of government simply does not apply to the papacy. The pope does not represent us; he represents Christ. He does not work for us; he works for God. To allow our loyalty to a pope to be determined by the alignment of his political views with our own is to treat God as our elected representative.

The office of the pope as Vicar of Christ does not mean, of course, that Catholics cannot voice concerns or offer respectful critiques of a pope. For a Catholic, such concerns or criticisms must always be respectful and coming from a place of charity toward the person of the pope and concern for the well-being of the Church. The pope’s role means that he must be obeyed and respected, but it does not mean that he does not make mistakes. He is human, after all.

'Knavish imbecility'

The Church has never claimed that its servants are faultless. Many leaders — and even popes — in the history of the Church have made mistakes and behaved badly. To point out such behavior is entirely appropriate, but to claim that a bad pope disproves the claims of the Church is akin to claiming the U.S. Constitution cannot be a workable system of government because Woodrow Wilson was a terrible president.

Hilaire Belloc summed up the matter well when he wrote, “The Catholic Church is an institution I am bound to hold divine, but for unbelievers, a proof of its divinity might be found in the fact that no merely human institution conducted with such knavish imbecility would have lasted a fortnight.”

For Catholics, our relationship to our Holy Father goes far beyond the policies we may or may not agree on, just as our Church goes far beyond our political alignment with those in the pews around us.

To a Catholic, our Church is the one true Christian religion. Our membership in it is just as much a part of us as our arms and legs. Such is our loyalty to the Holy Father.

Whatever we may think of him, however he may treat us, we know that Christ, who founded our Church, remains with us, “Even to the consummation of the world.” Taking the advice of St. Padre Pio, American Catholic conservatives such as myself will pray, we will hope, and we will not worry.

Pope Francis and Tom Homan ENGAGE in heated immigration debate



Pope Francis has been criticizing Donald Trump’s immigration policies, specifically his deportation of illegal aliens and restricting the number of refugees that can receive asylum.

But border czar Tom Homan has the president’s back, pointing out the hypocrisy of the Vatican criticizing U.S. border enforcement while maintaining its own heavily secured walls.

"They have a wall around the Vatican. If you illegally enter the Vatican, the crime is serious. You'll be charged with a serious crime and jailed," Homan said. "So [the pope] can protect the Vatican where he lives, but Americans aren't allowed to do that?"

“I say this as a lifelong Catholic,” Homan added. “He ought to focus on his work and leave enforcement to us.”


“While we’ve said these exact same things for years, it is fantastic to hear a government official with actual power say the same thing, because the pope’s certainly not paying any attention to us saying it,” Pat Gray of “Pat Gray Unleashed” comments.

“He’s got a wall around the Vatican, does he not?” Gray adds. “And it’s a big freaking wall. I think it’s 40 feet high.”

“How many illegals reside in the Vatican right now?” he asks, before Keith Malinak takes it upon himself to ask the AI bot Gemini the same question.

“No one who is not a citizen or authorized official is allowed to live in Vatican City, which has strict residency requirements,” Gemini responded.

“Oh my gosh,” Gray yells.

Want more from Pat Gray?

To enjoy more of Pat's biting analysis and signature wit as he restores common sense to a senseless world, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

FACT CHECK: Does This Video Show The Pope Discussing His ‘Secret Agenda’?

Part of the video shows Pope Francis speaking Italian, but the subtitles are not acccurate.

Pope Francis forcibly removes conservative Texas bishop



Pope Francis forcibly removed a conservative bishop based out of Texas on Saturday.

The Vatican removed Bishop Joseph E. Strickland from the pastoral governance of the Diocese of Tyler, Texas.

To replace Strickland, the pope appointed Bishop Joe Vasquez from Austin, Texas, as the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Tyler.

The Vatican ordered an apostolic visitation in June.

According to Vatican News, the investigation was handled by Bishop Dennis Sullivan of Camden, New Jersey, and Bishop Emeritus Gerald Kicanas of Tucson, Arizona.

Cardinal Daniel Nicholas DiNardo – Metropolitan Archbishop of Galveston-Houston – issued a statement that read: "After months of careful consideration by the Dicastery for Bishops and the Holy Father, the decision was reached that the resignation of Bishop Strickland should be requested."

The Vatican asked Strickland to resign on Nov. 9. However, Strickland refused.

Two days later, Pope Francis removed Strickland from office.

Strickland was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI in 2012.

Strickland, 65, was a leading critic of Pope Francis and often challenged his leadership over social media.

According to the National Catholic Reporter, Strickland said the church was "weak" and "not clear" under Francis' leadership. The outlet added that Strickland even dared Francis to "fire him."

In May, Strickland wrote on the X social media platform, "I believe Pope Francis is the Pope but it is time for me to say that I reject his program of undermining the Deposit of Faith. Follow Jesus."

Strickland – a self-described "red-pilled" bishop – once described President Joseph Biden as an "evil president.

According to the Associated Press, "It is rare for the pope to forcibly remove a bishop from office. Bishops are required to offer to resign when they reach 75. When the Vatican uncovers issues with governance or other problems that require a bishop to leave office before then, the Vatican usually seeks to pressure him to resign for the good of his diocese and the church.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!