Vice President JD Vance refused to talk about politics about the newly elected Pope Friday, calling his election “a wonderful thing.”
“Through my life, many people have told you you'll never have an American Pope,” Vance told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt after being asked to respond to his election. “Obviously, we do that, so I think it's great.”
Vance said, “We don't know much about him, but I wish him the best, am I right? I am the Catholic Church. He is now the head of the Catholic Church. And I hope that his wisdom, his good decisions, and his health, and that he has a long and successful Pope.”
The vice president told Hewitt that things like new pope elections can often be “discolored” by politics.
The inclusive tone of the new Pope doesn't sit well with some people in the “America's first” movement
JD Vance refused to speak politics about the newly elected Pope Friday, calling his election “a wonderful thing.” (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images; Alberto Pizzoliafp via Getty Images)
“People are asking if he is a conservative or if he is a liberal,” Vance continued. “He's attacking President Trump and J.D. Vance on certain things and not attacking Democrats on other things.”
He said the idea was “it's difficult to fit a 2,000-year-old institution into 2025 American politics.”
As a Catholic convert, Vance said, “I'm trying to avoid politicizing the Pope Game. I'm sure he's going to say a lot of things I love.
Vance's remarks came after the news of the X account, linked to Cardinal Robert Prebust, who reposted an article earlier this year that criticized the Trump administration for pushing out of deportation.
He also agreed with Hewitt that it was “unfortunate” to ask Cardinals about Leo's elections about Trump at a press conference.
The first American-born pope inspires faith leaders across the country
Vance met with the late Pope Francis last month. (Vatican Media via AP and HO)
“The church is much bigger than politics,” he said.
He continued, “There are many views that Catholic leadership holds. That may be considered on the right side of the spectrum. There are many views that they may be more traditionally on the left side of the spectrum.
Vance said that the church is sometimes exposed to public policy, but “it's not really the case.”
“If the church is about soul salvation and does not try to fit it into a pre-determined political box, I think it would be better for all of us,” he concluded.
Pope Leo XIV was elected to succeed Pope Francis on Thursday after his death in the previous month after last month's health war.
President Trump immediately congratulated Leo on his election on Thursday.
The newly elected Pope Leo XIV will be first seen on May 8th from the Vatican Balcony. (Dunkitwood/Getty Images)
“It's a great honor to realize he was the first American Pope,” he wrote in the Truth Social Post. “What excitement and what a wonderful honor for our nation. I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV. It will be a very meaningful moment!”
However, other conservatives like Steve Bannon, a former White House chief strategist in Trump's first administration and a Catholic called Leo, are called “the worst pick of all time.”
Pro Trump conservative commentator Joey Mannarino said, “The new Pope recently attacked JD Vance, showing solidarity with Kilmer Abrego Garcia and asking Trump to open the borders like Biden.”
“Let's say it's not such a great tweet about having some motivation for open borders. We're looking at how he's about it,” conservative radio host Charlie Kirk said in the X video.
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Kirk said, “Overall, he seems like a pro-life warrior. We don't learn much about this Pope yet, but I hope he will become a strong defender of a strong boundary, and for sovereignty.”
