Donald Trump invited Pope Leo XIV to the White House through a letter delivered by Vice President JD Vance during his visit to the Vatican for the inauguration of the new pontiff on Sunday, May 18th.
The spokesperson for the Trump administration, Karoline Leavitt, explained in a press conference that “the vice president delivered a letter from the president and the first lady to the pope, expressing their warmest wishes and inviting him to the White House as soon as possible.”
In the event that he accepts the proposal, it will be the first visit of a pope to the White House since 2015, when Francis was received by the then U.S. President, Barack Obama.
His eventual trip, in this case of the first pope born in the United States, would mark the fourth visit to the headquarters of the U.S. presidency by a Pontiff. John Paul II visited Jimmy Carter in 1979, and Benedict XVI visited George W. Bush in 2008.
What is Trump’s relationship with Leo XIV like?
“Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who has just been appointed Pope. It is a great honor to know that he is the first American Pope. What excitement and what a great honor for our country!” wrote Trump on May 8 when Prevost was appointed as the new pontiff of the Catholic Church.
Through his account on the X network, @drprevost (which was closed once he became pope), Prevost used to repost information and opinions opposing the anti-immigrant policies (especially against Latin migrants) of the Donald Trump government.
One of their recent publications was an article about Pope Francis’ letter to the bishops of the United States criticizing Trump’s policies, and another one about an editorial titled “JD Vance is wrong: Jesus does not ask us to classify our love for others.”
Years before, in 2017, after the signing of an executive order by Donald Trump that temporarily suspended the refugee resettlement program in the United States and specifically banned the entry of Syrian citizens, Robert Prevost shared a critical message on social media that said “Are we banning all Syrian refugees? The men, women, and children who need help the most? What an immoral nation we are becoming. Jesus weeps".