Homan Tells Catholic Church to ‘Stay Out of Immigration,’ Escalating White House Clash With Vatican

White House border czar Tom Homan publicly urged the Catholic Church to “stay out of immigration” on Tuesday, escalating a remarkable confrontation between the Trump administration and the Vatican that began after President Trump criticized Pope Leo XIV — the first American-born pope in the Church’s nearly 2,000-year history — on social media. The comments mark a significant deepening of tensions between the U.S. government and the world’s largest Christian denomination, which counts roughly 70 million American adherents.

Homan’s public rebuke of the Catholic Church touches on a long and deeply entangled relationship between the institution and the American immigration system. Catholic Charities USA and its network of diocesan agencies have for decades served as one of the primary nonprofit conduits for refugee resettlement in the United States, working under cooperative agreements with the federal government. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Migration and Refugee Services has been a designated resettlement agency since the passage of the Refugee Act of 1980, processing tens of thousands of cases annually. Catholic-affiliated organizations also provide legal aid, shelter, and humanitarian assistance to migrants along the U.S.-Mexico border, a role that has increasingly drawn scrutiny — and at times direct opposition — from immigration enforcement hardliners. Homan’s suggestion that the Church should focus on its own internal problems rather than immigration policy represents an explicit challenge to what the Church considers a core element of its social teaching: the moral obligation to welcome the stranger.

The broader context of this confrontation involves the election of Pope Leo XIV, who took the name upon his selection as the successor to Pope Francis. As the first American-born pope, his election was initially greeted with widespread interest and some national pride across the political spectrum. However, President Trump quickly took to social media to criticize the new pontiff, a move that surprised many observers given the historic nature of an American ascending to the papacy. The Vatican has historically spoken on immigration issues as a matter of moral and doctrinal concern, with Pope Francis having been particularly vocal about the treatment of migrants worldwide. Catholic social doctrine, rooted in papal encyclicals dating back to Pope Leo XIII’s “Rerum Novarum” in 1891, has long emphasized the dignity of all people, including migrants and refugees. The Church’s position is not a recent political stance but rather a theological commitment that spans more than a century of formal teaching.

The political implications of this confrontation are significant. Catholic voters have historically been a crucial swing demographic in American elections, splitting roughly evenly between the two major parties in recent cycles. In 2024, Catholic voters were heavily courted by both campaigns. Homan’s comments risk alienating Catholic constituencies who may support stricter border enforcement but bristle at a government official telling their Church what issues it should or should not engage in. The U.S. bishops’ conference has not yet issued a formal response to Homan’s remarks, but individual Catholic leaders and advocacy organizations have begun pushing back, framing the administration’s posture as an attempt to silence religious institutions on matters of conscience. Legal scholars have also noted that the First Amendment’s protections of religious free exercise include the right of religious institutions to advocate on public policy, and that government officials discouraging such engagement raises constitutional questions about the separation of church and state.

Looking ahead, the trajectory of this dispute will likely depend on several factors: whether the Vatican issues any formal diplomatic response, whether the administration takes concrete action against Catholic-affiliated resettlement agencies, and how Catholic voters and elected officials react. Several Catholic members of Congress from both parties have been pressed for comment. The situation is further complicated by the fact that federal funding for Catholic Charities’ resettlement work has already been a target in recent budget negotiations, raising the prospect that the rhetorical clash could translate into material policy consequences for one of the nation’s largest charitable networks. Observers will be watching closely to see whether this episode remains a war of words or evolves into a substantive policy confrontation with far-reaching implications for both religious liberty and immigration enforcement.