CatholicVote President Kelsey Reinhardt on April 13 said President Donald Trump’s social media post insulting Pope Leo XIV crossed “a line of decorum” important to diplomacy and calls for an apology are “well founded.” At the same time, she pushed back against claims of a broader conflict between the White House and the Vatican, urging American Catholics not to interpret the leaders’ relationship as meaning they must choose between faith and country.
“There is no doubt that President Trump’s post insulting Pope Leo crossed, again, a line of decorum that plays an important part in diplomacy and sets the temperature for interactions between the two,” Reinhardt wrote in a statement posted to X. “Calls for an apology are well founded.”
There is no doubt that President Trump’s post insulting Pope Leo crossed, again, a line of decorum that plays an important part in diplomacy and sets the temperature for interactions between the two. Calls for an apology are well founded.
— Kelsey (Wicks) Reinhardt (@catholickelsey) April 13, 2026
But we also need to reasonably evaluate…
As Zeale News previously reported, Trump said in his lengthy Truth Social post late April 12 that he is “not a big fan” of Pope Leo and called the Pontiff “weak” and “terrible.” He also questioned the Holy Father’s leadership and motives and claimed credit for his election to the papacy.
Reinhardt warned against portraying the dispute as a broader rupture between the Vatican and Trump.
The “Vatican-vs.-Trump narrative” pushed by people who “are trying to turn a public disagreement into a grand showdown between the two” is “false, and Catholics should reject it,” Reinhardt said.
As evidence that such a narrative is misplaced, she pointed to statements from Archbishop Paul Coakley, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), and from Pope Leo himself, who have made clear that “the Pope is not a politician, not a partisan operator, and not a rival to the President of the United States.”
“He is the Vicar of Christ. His role is to speak moral truth, defend human dignity, and call leaders to pursue peace,” Reinhardt said. “The President needs to hear that in a way he understands.”
As Zeale News reported, Pope Leo told reporters earlier on April 13 that Church leaders are not politicians nor are they “looking to make foreign policy with the same perspective” that Trump might hold. Instead, the Holy Father said he believes the message of the Gospel, “‘blessed are the peacemakers,’ is a message that the world needs to hear.”
Reinhardt also said that although some of the Pope’s comments might sound “out of step with the tone, assumptions, or priorities of American politics,” that does not make him “‘anti-American,’” nor does it constitute an attack on the U.S.
“And it certainly does not mean Catholics should be manipulated into choosing between the Church and their country,” Reinhardt said.
She also noted that the Pope “needs to understand that many Americans view his interventions as overtly political and aligned with one side of the political spectrum.”
“Catholics who have been paying attention note that no such condemnation of the loss of life through abortion ever came from Rome to Catholic President Joe Biden during the last pontificate, despite that evil ending millions of lives,” Reinhardt said.
She highlighted the unique position of U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See Brian Burch — the founder and first president of CatholicVote — as someone who can serve “as a credible bridge between Washington and Rome,” given his understanding of the convictions and concerns on both sides. She said that allows him to play a key role at a time when honest mediation and clearer communication are needed.
Reinhardt again warned that American Catholics should reject the “deliberate effort to manufacture a large-scale confrontation between the Vatican and the United States, between Pope Leo and President Trump, or between fidelity to the Holy Father and love of country.”
“Parts of the media are pushing that narrative. So are identifiable bad actors, including some inside the Church. They want conflict. They feed on confusion. And they benefit from division,” she said. “Catholics should be smarter than that.”
Reinhardt closed by urging restraint and prayer and called on Catholics to delineate between moral principles and the realm of politics.
“For now, let’s pray for wisdom for both leaders,” she added. “And do not let others manufacture a conflict that does not have to exist.”