Why is Trump attacking the Pope? Three theories: trap, complex or conspiracy
The world has never seen a fight like this: two of the most powerful Americans of our time enter the ring. In the secular corner, Donald Trump, the 47th president of the USA and master of the fate of 330 million compatriots. In the spiritual corner is Leo XIV, the 267th pope and shepherd of over 1 billion 400 million Catholics. One commands the strongest army in the world, the other several Swiss guards with halberds.
Context: Since Easter Sunday, Pope Leo XIV has repeatedly criticized the Trump government for its wars. When U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth publicly asked God for “crushing force against those who do not deserve mercy,” the pope said God did not hear the prayers of those who had “blood on their hands.” He then called on Trump to end the war in Iran and condemned his tirades about destroying an entire civilization as “unacceptable.”
Trump responded with open attacks. He called the pope “terrible for our foreign policy”, accused him of wanting “Iran with a nuclear bomb” and of not wanting to “fight criminals”. Trump has repeatedly emphasized: “I am not a fan of Pope Leo.”
So why is Trump attacking God's messenger from Chicago? Here are the possible explanations.
Theory #1: Obama conspiracy
There is a conspiracy theory circulating in Trump's camp that the pope is part of an attack coordinated by former US president Barack Obama. They are both from Chicago and both are considered liberal. In addition, the pope was recently visited by Obama's former chief strategist, David Axelrod, and Obama himself recently said that he would be happy to meet Leon in the near future.
For MAGA representatives, such as investor Hal Lambert, this is evidence that Democrats, together with the Pope, want to weaken Trump and Republicans before the midterm elections. The goal is to pit Catholics against Republicans during the elections of members of the US Congress. Proponents of this theory conveniently ignore the fact that Vice President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio (both converted Catholics) recently visited the Pope and delivered letters from Trump.
US Vice President JD Vance during his visit to Hungary, Budapest, April 8, 2026.Robert Hegedus / PAP
Theory #2: Vance trap
According to former Trump spokesman and current critic Anthony Scaramucci the attack (on the pope) is actually aimed at JD Vance. The vice president, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, fell out of favor with Trump after Vance's entourage allegedly provided the New York Times with secret information regarding an embarrassing meeting for Trump with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.
Theory #3: the Jesus complex
The third theory is that Trump is simply jealous of Jesus and is therefore targeting his earthly messenger. Back in 2020, Trump said that many consider him the most famous man in the world, “but there is someone even more famous: Jesus Christ.”
After the attack of July 14, 2024, the US president repeatedly presented himself as the chosen one whom God spared so that he could fulfill His mission. The party congress held shortly thereafter became a political spectacle of resurrection. This week, Trump also posted an AI-generated image depicting him as a Christ-like figure (though he quickly deleted it). And on Truth Social he wrote that Leo XIV was elected only “because the Church needed an American who could deal with President Donald J. Trump.” The fact that someone could disturb him in the glow of fame, or even undermine his position as the most powerful American, is intolerable to Trump.
The Obama conspiracy theory is a gibberish fantasy. A revenge trap for Vance and a Jesus complex seem much more likely. The last word in this extraordinary fight between two powerful Americans has not yet been spoken. Although Leo XIV claims that he is not a “politician” and “will not debate with Trump”, no one gets out of a conflict with him that easily – not even the pope.
