Trump v Pope
The Global Story
BBC
3.8 • 663 Ratings
🗓️ 15 April 2026
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Pope Leo XIV has said he has “no fear of the Trump administration”, after his criticism of the Iran war drew scorn from President Donald Trump.
On Sunday, the US President called the Pope “weak on crime and terrible on foreign policy”, and posted a now-deleted AI image of himself depicted as a Christ-like figure.The posts caused outrage among Catholics and the religious right, but he has said he will not apologise to the Pope.
We speak to BBC presenter and author Edward Stourton, who has reported on religious affairs and US politics for decades, about what happens when an American president takes on an American Pope.
Producers: Sam Chantarasak, Xandra Ellin and Lucy Pawle
Executive producer: James Shield
Mix: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: Pope Leo XIV addresses journalists during the flight heading to Algiers on April 13, 2026. Credit: Reuters/Alberto Pizzoli.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, music, radio, podcasts. |
| 0:06.1 | The most influential American in the world has almost always been the U.S. president. |
| 0:11.6 | But for the first time in history, maybe POTUS has a serious rival, Pope Leo XIV. |
| 0:19.1 | I have no fear neither the Trump administration |
| 0:22.2 | are speaking out loudly |
| 0:23.8 | about the message in the gospel. |
| 0:27.1 | Since his election last May, |
| 0:29.3 | Leo has steadily become more vocal |
| 0:31.3 | about President Donald Trump, |
| 0:33.6 | criticizing his policies on immigration |
| 0:35.6 | and foreign policy interventions like Venezuela and increasingly |
| 0:40.3 | Iran. He's a man that doesn't believe in stopping crime. In the last week, it seemed, |
| 0:45.5 | President Trump took it up a notch and erupted. I'm not a fan of Boblia. From the BBC in London, |
| 0:52.6 | I'm Tristan Redmond. And I'm Asma Khalin. |
| 0:55.2 | And today on the global story, what happens when an American pope takes on an American president? |
| 1:07.3 | In today's episode, we'll be speaking with the BBC's Ed Sturton, a man who knows his way |
| 1:13.0 | around both US politics and the Catholic Church. |
| 1:16.4 | But first, it's worth a quick recap. |
| 1:18.4 | Now, you all have probably heard and you've probably seen some of the beef between the Pope |
| 1:22.7 | and the president. |
| 1:23.8 | The situation has been tense for some time on issues like immigration and deportation. |
| 1:29.5 | But it really started ratcheting up in January in the wake of the U.S. intervention in Venezuela, |
... |
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