From Mediaite:
Vice President JD Vance was confronted on Wednesday with a recent report that the Pentagon threatened the Vatican with military force. A Monday report from The Free Press detailed the rocky relationship between President Donald Trump’s White House and Pope Leo XIV, the Holy See’s first U.S.-born Pope. According to the report, the Pentagon invited the Holy See ambassador to the U.S., Cardinal Christophe Pierre, for a meeting in response to a recent speech by the Pope.
During that meeting, U.S. officials reportedly complained about the speech and took exception to Pope Leo’s indirect shots at the president. One of those officials, the report continued, even referenced the Avignon Papacy of the 14th century — a period largely defined by the French Crown imposing its will to influence the Catholic Church.
UPDATE: Letters from Leo can now independently confirm that the meeting took place — and that the Vatican was so alarmed by the Pentagon’s tactics that Pope Leo XIV shelved plans to visit the United States later this year.
Many in the Vatican saw the Pentagon’s reference to an… https://t.co/nOWTWF4oI0
— Christopher Hale (@ChristopherHale) April 8, 2026