US Vice President JD Vance responded strongly to the US Conference of Catholic Bishops regarding their criticism of the Trump administration’s policy allowing Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in churches and schools.
The religious organisation had expressed concern that the policy was “turning places of care, healing, and solace into places of fear and uncertainty for those in need” and cautioned about damaging “the trust between pastors” and “the people they serve.”
“As a practicing Catholic, I was actually heartbroken by that statement. I think that the US Conference of Catholic Bishops needs to actually look in the mirror a little bit and recognise that when they receive over $100 million to help resettle illegal immigrants. Are they worried about humanitarian concerns? Or are they actually worried about their bottom line?,” Vance said while speaking on CBS News’
Vance further criticised the Catholic organisation, raising concerns about border security under the Biden administration. “If they’re worried about the humanitarian costs of immigration enforcement, let them talk about the children who have been sex trafficked because of the wide open border of Joe Biden,” he said.
Vance became Catholic in 2019, having previously practised evangelical protestantism. Reports suggest that technology entrepreneur Pete Thiel played a significant role in influencing his religious transition.
President Donald Trump, formerly a Presbyterian who now identifies as a nondenominational Christian, has had tensions with Catholic Church authorities, including Pope Francis. The Pope recently condemned his large-scale deportation initiatives as a “disgrace”.
Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde, who leads the Episcopal diocese of Washington, DC, addressed both Trump and Vance during the inuaguration ceremony and requested the president to have “mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now,” including transgender people.
