Vice President JD Vance is trying to cool the temperature between President Donald Trump and Pope Leo, telling MISRYOUM that he welcomes the Vatican’s disagreements and hopes they spur dialogue—while also insisting the church is not always right on policy.
Vice President JD Vance framed the Vatican’s public pushback as something the Trump administration should not fear—while admitting his boss has made the relationship distinctly uncomfortable.
In an interview tied to the release of his new book. Vance said he welcomes Pope Leo expressing disagreement with the Trump administration. arguing that it can encourage dialogue rather than shutdown. “I actually welcome the Vatican’s engagement on these issues even where we disagree, maybe especially where we disagree,” he said.
His comments arrive after months of open friction between President Donald Trump and the pope, including Trump’s sharp public rejection of Leo’s views on an Iran nuclear dispute and the administration’s broader tendency to clash with church leaders on issues ranging from war to immigration.
Vance also described a role for the Vatican that is moral and principled rather than operational. He said the Vatican and Pope Leo can weigh in on “moral concerns that confront policymakers. ” and that the church’s engagement is “totally appropriate” on issues such as immigration or humanitarian aid to Cuba.
At the same time. Vance drew a line that helps explain why his stance sounds conciliatory without fully defusing the underlying conflict. He said he does not expect Pope Leo to “be silent” on major issues or “stay out of politics.” But he added: “I also don’t think that it means the Vatican is always going to be right.”.
In Vance’s view, elected leaders are better suited to manage public policy. “The comments come after” a pattern in which Trump has publicly contradicted the pope. while Vance has often tried to translate religious commentary into something more governable—moral guidance that can be discussed. not a final verdict on national strategy.
The tension stretches well beyond language. In April. Trump told the pope to “focus on being a Great Pope. not a Politician. ” and he accused Pope Leo of “endangering a lot of Catholics.” Earlier. when Trump posted on social media in April that he would wipe out Iran’s “whole civilization” if the regime didn’t submit to his demands. the pope called the threat “truly unacceptable.”.
Trump then escalated the feud on Truth Social by attacking Leo as “WEAK on crime” and “terrible for Foreign Policy,” and reiterating that Leo should “stop catering to the Radical Left, and focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician.”
Pope Leo responded that he “doesn’t fear” the administration and that speaking out loudly of the Gospel message is part of his role.
That is the backdrop for Vance’s current message: he wants the Vatican in the room, but he wants disagreements to remain disagreements.
Vance’s attempt to occupy that space has already been tested in earlier remarks. In April, he warned Pope Leo to “be careful” when talking about theology and said the Vatican ought to “stick to matters of morality” in some cases, after the pope tangled with President Donald Trump.
During a June 8 interview focused on his book ahead of its June 16 release, Vance expanded on what he believes the pope should do in public debates. The book, “Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith,” is a follow-up to his bestselling memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy.”
Vance’s political ambition is part of why these remarks land with extra force. The text describes him as a likely 2028 presidential contender. To win the Republican nomination. he would need support from conservatives who have strongly backed Trump—yet Trump has unsettled some religious conservatives through actions including posting a Christ-like image of himself online as well as lashing out at Pope Leo and the Vatican.
The conflict over war and theology shows how quickly the debate can spiral. The Vatican and the Catholic Church have long been outspoken against war. Vance has been critical of U.S. involvement in foreign conflicts but has defended the Iran war after reportedly expressing concerns about entering the conflict.
In April 14 remarks, Vance stressed the different kinds of expertise at play. “I kind of like” when the pope weighs in on immigration. abortion and war because it “at the very least it invites a conversation. ” he said. He also argued for caution from both sides—saying it is important for the vice president of the United States to be careful when discussing matters of public policy. and for the pope to be careful when discussing matters of theology.
The exchange with the pope’s theology also played out publicly at a Turning Point USA rally in Georgia on April 14. After Leo wrote on social media that “Anyone who is a disciple of Christ. the Prince of Peace. is never on the side of those who once wielded the sword and today drop bombs. ” Vance asked a direct question: “Was God on the side of the Americans who liberated France from the Nazis?” He followed by asking whether God was on the side of Americans who liberated Holocaust camps and liberated those who had survived the Holocaust. saying. “I certainly think the answer is yes.”.
That line of thinking aligns with the way Trump framed the pope’s criticism earlier. Trump called Leo’s approach “terrible for Foreign Policy,” and the pope’s stance on the Iran nuclear dispute was at the center of the clash.
Tensions between the administration and the Vatican have appeared to ease at moments after the initial dust-up. Secretary of State Marco Rubio traveled to the Vatican in May in what was widely viewed as a peacemaking mission. More recently. Vance told NBC News that he found the pope’s encyclical warning about artificial intelligence “very profound. and the sort of thing that you would expect and hope from a leader of the church.”.
The Vatican’s concerns about policy have also intersected with immigration politics in the Trump era. The administration has clashed with the Vatican on immigration. Leo’s predecessor. Pope Francis. criticized Trump’s deportation push last year by writing an open letter to Catholic bishops in the United States saying it was a “major crisis” that “will end badly.”.
Vance’s book looks like part of his effort to recast those Vatican meetings in a more personal. less combative light. In it. he writes that “the media exaggerated the conflict for clicks and ratings” and says he preferred Francis’ “specific exhortations to the vagueness I had encountered during our Vatican meetings” during a visit to Rome just before the pontiff’s death. Vance also wrote: “Better to have an honest conversation than one masked by cliches.”.
Taken together, Vance’s current message draws a clearer map of his strategy: keep the Vatican engaged, even when it disagrees loudly, and treat the pope’s moral voice as something worth hearing—without conceding that church judgment should govern U.S. public policy.
JD Vance Pope Leo Vatican Donald Trump Iran nuclear dispute immigration humanitarian aid to Cuba Marco Rubio visit encyclical on artificial intelligence Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith Hillbilly Elegy