Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said Friday that she hopes the newly elected Pope Leo XIV, the first American pontiff to lead the Catholic Church, will be vocal about opposing mass deportations.
An account under then-Cardinal Robert Prevost’s name previously shared posts on social media that were critical of some of the Trump administration’s immigration policies.
“This new pope is said to be acutely aware of conditions forcing migration, of the vulnerabilities of migrants,” MSNBC’s Chris Jansing said to Pelosi after referencing the pope’s past posts. “Do you think that at this moment, when so many people are looking to him, he could be impactful as a moral and ethical voice on that issue that we’re dealing with, when so many people are being deported or fear it?”
“I certainly hope so,” Pelosi replied.
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In February, Prevost shared an article on X from the National Catholic Reporter titled “JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn’t ask us to rank our love for others.”
The article was critical of the vice president saying it was a “Christian concept” to “love your family and then you love your neighbor, and then you love your community, and then you love your fellow citizens, and then after that, prioritize the rest of the world. A lot of the far left has completely inverted that,” in relation to illegal immigration.
“From his comments previous to being elected the pope, he has made clear what his values and his view of all of that is,” Pelosi added about the posts. “And it is important, it is really important for us to listen to the words, both of our elected officials, when they say what they say about ranking people in their importance and, and our religious leaders.”
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John Prevost, Pope Leo’s brother, told CNN affiliate WBBM that he thinks his brother is concerned about the U.S.’s approach to immigration.
“I think he sees the United States is headed in the wrong direction in terms of immigration, that this is a total injustice,” John Prevost said. “These are people. Doesn‘t matter where they‘re born, they are people first. And so they need to be treated as people first.”
President Donald Trump made immigration reform a central part of his campaign, and during the first 100 days of the Trump administration, Immigration, Customs and Enforcement (ICE) arrested at least 32,809 illegal immigrants and 1,155 individuals who were thought to be part of a criminal gang. Out of the over 32,000 illegal immigrants arrested, 14,111 were convicted criminals and 9,980 have pending criminal charges.
Trump praised Pope Leo’s selection on Thursday, saying he looked forward to meeting him and expressing pride that he was the first American pontiff.
“It is such an honor to realize that he is the first American Pope. What excitement, and what a Great Honor for our Country. I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV. It will be a very meaningful moment!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
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Vance, a Catholic convert who met Pope Francis just before he died, also congratulated the new pope on his selection Thursday.
“Congratulations to Leo XIV, the first American Pope, on his election!” Vance said on X. “I’m sure millions of American Catholics and other Christians will pray for his successful work leading the Church. May God bless him!”