Trump launches astonishing new attack on the Pope in row over nukes – 'he likes crime'

A few hours after criticising Pope Leo XIV on Truth Social, Donald Trump launched into a new attack against the head of the Catholic Church. Speaking to reporters on Sunday night, the US President replied to a journalist who asked him why he had criticised the pope.

Launching a scathing attack, Trump said he doesn’t think the US-born pope is “doing a very good job”, before adding that “he likes crime I guess”. He continued: “We don’t like a pope who says it is ok to have a nuclear weapon. “We don’t want a pope that says crime is ok in our cities. I don’t like it.”

Concluding his rant the 79-year-old said: “I am not a big fan of Pope Leo. He is a very liberal person and he’s a man that doesn’t believe in stopping crime.

“He’s a man that doesn’t think that we should be toying with a country that wants a nuclear weapon so that they can blow up the world. I’m not a fan of Pope Leo.”

It was only a couple of hours ago that Trump once again reiterated that hes “not a fan of Pope Leo” in a post on Truth Social.

In a brutal rant the US President said he doesn’t think the leader of the Catholic church was “doing a very good job” and that he was “a very liberal person”.

He said the 70-year-old pope was was “weak on crime and terrible for Foreign Policy”.

The lengthly post added that “Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican” if he “wasn’t in the White House”. Trump said he likes “his brother Louis much better than I like him, because Louis is all MAGA. He gets it, and Leo doesn’t”.

Speaking during an evening peace vigil at St Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City on Saturday, Pope Leo XIV, issued a direct appeal to world leaders to return to negotiations.

Leading the service he said: “Enough of the idolatry of self and money! Enough of the display of power! Enough of war! True strength is shown in serving life.”

Leo also warned against what he called “that delusion of omnipotence that surrounds us and is becoming increasingly unpredictable and aggressive”.