Looking at Pope Leo XIV's Past Social Media: "Negative Toward Trump Policies"

NYT Reports: "Negative Toward Trump’s Immigration Policies"
Also Shared Posts Criticizing U.S. Political Issues

There has been analysis suggesting that Leo XIV, who was elected as the 267th pope, holds a negative stance toward various policies of the Donald Trump administration in the United States.

Leo XIV. AFP Yonhap News

The New York Times (NYT) reported on May 8 (local time) that posts expressing critical views of the Trump administration's immigration policies stood out on an X (formerly Twitter) account believed to have been operated by Leo XIV under his birth name, Robert Prevost.

NYT explained, "Although it has not been confirmed that this X account was actually operated by Leo XIV, it was linked to a phone number and email address that appear to be associated with him."

Recently, the account shared an article from an American Catholic media outlet criticizing U.S. Vice President JD Vance. The article argued that Vice President Vance, a Catholic, misinterpreted Christian doctrine when he referenced the biblical concept of love for family and neighbors while defending policies to deport undocumented immigrants. Last month, the account also shared a post by a Catholic writer questioning the suffering caused by the immigration policies of President Trump and President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador.

This account also expressed a critical perspective on immigration policy during Trump’s first administration. In 2018, it shared a post by an American cardinal stating that the policy of separating parents and children during the deportation of undocumented immigrants was "neither Christian nor American, and cannot be morally justified." It also shared statements by clergy criticizing the repeal of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, implemented under the Barack Obama administration, as "racist and promoting nationalism."

There were also posts about major political issues in the United States. In 2020, the account shared a statement by seven American bishops condemning the death of George Floyd, saying they were "overwhelmed with shock and anger," and retweeted posts by politicians advocating for gun control. It also shared posts criticizing former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's stance on abortion rights for women.

However, only a very small portion of posts from this account, which has been active since 2011, were related to American politics. Most posts were written in Spanish and frequently shared announcements from the Peruvian Bishops' Conference or the Vatican.

Meanwhile, some close associates of President Trump have expressed antipathy toward Leo XIV. Steve Bannon, who was known as Trump's "strategist," said before the conclave that "Cardinal Prevost is a dark horse among the papal candidates," but added, "Unfortunately, he is one of the most progressive figures."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.