The Catholic Right Is Deeply Divided Over Pope Leo Welcome to the weekend. With America’s most powerful Catholic convert, Vice President JD Vance, descending on Vatican City tomorrow for Pope Leo XIV’s inaugural Mass, Kathryn Joyce takes a deep look at how Catholic Church conservatives have responded to Francis’s successor. There was immediate blowback from the right, followed by some prominent voices indicating they’d keep an open mind.
“I don’t know how the Pope Leo XIV papacy will unfold, but I have a feeling that as he continues to follow in the path of Pope Francis, and to set the Church on a similar trajectory, they will melt down,” says Mike Lewis, cofounder of the Catholic outlet Where Peter Is. “Whether or not that leads to formal schism, or some huge public clash, remains to be seen. But I think they are ideologically committed to their project, and I don’t see them turning around.”
Also looking abroad, Natalie Korach speaks with Axios journalist Barak Ravid about his scoops on Trump administration talks with everyone from Hamas to Iran to Ukraine. “Covering foreign policy and national security in Washington, as somebody who came from another country, it’s like going to Disneyland,” the Israeli-born Ravid tells her. “I’m a sick person, but it’s just so much fun.”
On the domestic front, Eric Lutz catches up with Arizona senator Ruben Gallego, who argues that Democrats need to be more assertive on border policy: “We’re just saying what we’re against and not what we’re for,” he says. And Issie Lapowsky explains how the uproar over James Comey’s Instagram post is not only “dumb,” but also potentially “dangerous.”
Plus, check out this week’s Inside the Hive, on which Radhika Jones, Claire Howorth, and I are joined by Gabriel Sherman to discuss the chaotic tenure of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Thanks for reading and listening.
—Michael Calderone, editor |
