Vice President JD Vance acknowledged that he may have spoken “too harshly” in past remarks about U.S. Catholic bishops while noting that disagreements between government officials and Church leaders over immigration policy are likely to continue.
In comments published March 4 by The Washington Post, Vance addressed a claim made by Cardinal Timothy Dolan during a wide-ranging interview with EWTN News that the vice president had apologized to him following criticism Vance made last year regarding the Church’s involvement in refugee resettlement programs.
During a CBS “Face the Nation” interview in January 2025, Vance questioned whether bishops criticizing the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement policies were “worried about their bottom line.”
Speaking about the exchange to the Washington Post, Vance said he did not recall the precise wording of his conversation with Cardinal Dolan.
“I’m not saying he’s lying, but I mean, look, sometimes I say things too harshly. I say things too directly,” Vance said.
The vice president recalled telling the cardinal that bishops must take care that financial considerations do not influence their public stance on immigration policy.
“I’m sure that I said something like that,” Vance said, explaining that he had urged Church leaders to “be careful your financial interests and the immigration issue don’t actually cloud your judgment.”
At the same time, Vance acknowledged that his criticism could have been expressed more carefully.
“I could have made that comment more carefully without going too hard at church leadership,” he added. “I’m sure that I said something like that, but I don’t remember exactly what I said.”
Despite policy disagreements, Vance said he respects the charitable work the Catholic Church carries out.
“I admire the spirit and the Christian charity of the Church,” he said, noting that the Church “has to minister to everybody, whether you’re a prisoner who’s committed a crime, or whether you’re an illegal immigrant who’s coming to the country illegally.”
Vance contrasted that pastoral role with what he described as the distinct responsibilities of public officials.
“I also recognize that, you know, I have a different job, and my job is to make sure that the American people are as safe and prosperous as they can be,” he said.
That responsibility, he said, sometimes requires government officials to ask difficult questions about immigration status and enforcement.
“And sometimes that means that possibly very good people that the Catholic Church are ministering to, I have to say, ‘has that person come into our country legally?’ And if not, should we try to do something to change that?”
Because of these differing roles, Vance suggested that tensions between civil authorities and religious leaders are not unusual.
“So that is going to inevitably lead to conflict between the government and the clergy,” he said. “What I try to do is come at that conflict in a spirit of charity.”
The vice president also struck a personal note when reflecting on his time in office.
“For better, for worse, I’m here for the next three years,” Vance said. “So if you love me, that’s great. If you don’t like me, I’m still going to be vice president (for) two years and 11 months — or however long I have.”