Human Events Daily host Jack Posobiec reported from Rome on Thursday after the new pope was elected, voicing serious concerns about what the surprise pick could mean for both the Church and the future of conservative politics. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, a native of Chicago, has been named Pope Leo XIV, becoming the first American ever to ascend to the papacy.
“Absolute shock, the first American pope has been chosen, already people are digging into his social media where he was actually an active Twitter user,” Posobiec said. “Robert Prevost, a cardinal born in Chicago, believe it or not—born in 1955. He’s 69 years old, which means he’s more than likely going to be pope for some time. At least 10+ years of this papacy, maybe 15, maybe even 20. This is someone who went to school, actually, not far from me in Philadelphia. He went to Villanova, I went to Temple University.”
But the reaction wasn’t just about the historic nature of the appointment. Posobiec quickly pointed out some troubling signs in Pope Leo XIV’s public record in a pro-Trump context.
“Folks, I’m going to tell you right now, what I’m seeing from his social media—and he’s taken the name Pope Leo XIV—what I’m seeing from social media does not bode well for Trump supporters, because we’re seeing things where he’s attacking JD Vance, and not years ago—very recently. Promoting anti-Trump and anti-Bukele articles regarding the deportations of criminal illegals to the United States. He was attacking that less than three weeks ago. We even see him posting anti-Trump articles from when Trump first ran for office. Not gonna mince words, folks, this is not the election that conservatives wanted. God save the Church.”
Taking a broader view, Posobiec explained that the election reflects a deeper ideological divide within American Catholicism.
“Now, of course, we take a moment of grace. We want to have the best papacy possible. I talked recently about how in the American Church, I’ve been saying this all week—there is a burgeoning split. There’s a division. There are two wings of the American Church now, right at the very first time an American pope has been chosen. These two wings exist as thus: one as the modernist wing—that is the wing that this pope comes from. He’s in the vein of Francis. Dr. Taylor Marshall called this the act of picking a ‘Francis II’.”
“A lot of people thought Parolin, the current Secretary of State of the Vatican, would get that choice, however, he’s older and there were some rumors about some health issues, so he might have rolled over. Some people have also said that there was a conservative choice, like a Cardinal Sarah—I didn’t think that was in the cards or likely. Potentially Cardinal Pizzaballa, but he didn’t have the institutional backing that the liberals and some of the moderates did.”
“So the question is, are we going to get a moderate pope or are we going to get someone who continues to be progressive, continues to attack the idea of a country having its own borders, continues to wade into these political issues?”
On the issues that matter most to traditional Catholics, Posobiec laid out where he hopes Pope Leo XIV will not waver.
“There’s a number of issues as well that certainly hope go on, and we hope the new pope stays [aligned], if he’s going to stay in line with Pope Francis. We certainly hope he maintains an anti-war position, we hope that he maintains this position that he affirms that only men can be priests. Nuns, of course, are always open for women. But priests are uniquely situated for a male role. It’s only for men. Same-sex relationships—this is something the Catholic Church has never accepted at all. Will we see the same teaching on LGBTQ ideas and issues? Will we see the same teaching on gender issues? All of these need to hold firm.”
But among all these, Posobiec emphasized one area that concerns him most.
“The main one that a lot of people—and people are very concerned about, myself included: borders and immigration. Will this pope continue to antagonize President Trump and JD Vance?”
“The choice of an American pope, it is clearly a reaction to President Trump. I honestly can’t see this read in almost any other light. This is clearly a reaction. And I call this a reaction because here’s the question: Is this someone who wants to work with the American president, being that he is from the United States? Being that he is someone who speaks English? Being that he is someone who grew up in the United States? Or is this someone who antagonizes? Is this someone who will be antagonizing President Trump?”
Later in the broadcast, Posobiec turned to the fundamental principle that inspired the show’s headline:
“A nation has no obligation whatsoever to feed the entire world if they choose to come over. For example, by the way, if I go over to my friend’s house, he has no obligation to feed me. If I go over with my wife and my kids and my friends and their friends beyond, there is no obligation there whatsoever. Now, you’re imposing. That’s the correct morality on this question.”
“I said it at the beginning of this show and I’ll say it again. The pope is not infallible on political matters. He’s not. The pope is not infallible on political matters—neither are you, neither am I, none of us are.”
In closing, Posobiec called for clarity and cooperation from the new pontiff.
“What we pray for, what we absolutely pray for, and we will continue to pray for with this new American pope—Megyn Kelly had a tweet up, she said, could it be possible that some 20-year-old liberal was in control of his Twitter account and he didn’t even know? We’ll see, Megyn. When it comes down to it, we need to have a pope who’s willing to work with the [Trump administration]. I want to see President Trump invite him right away.”
Born in Chicago in 1955, Robert Francis Prevost spent more than three decades working in Peru, where he served as both a missionary and later a bishop. His long tenure in Latin America ended when he was called to Rome in 2020. Three years later, Pope Francis placed him at the helm of the Dicastery for Bishops—a powerful Vatican office responsible for selecting and overseeing bishops around the world.
On Wednesday evening, shortly after 6:10 pm local time, white smoke rose above the Sistine Chapel, marking the end of the conclave and the beginning of a new papacy. The 133 cardinal electors had reached agreement on their fourth vote, making this one of the quicker conclaves in recent memory. Moments later, Pope Leo XIV stepped onto the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica and greeted a jubilant crowd assembled in the square below.
This Story originally came from humanevents.com