Overview
- Marco Rubio, who arrived in Rome Thursday morning, met Pope Leone XIV at the Vatican to try to cool tensions after the president’s latest attacks.
- The Pope rejected Trump's characterization and said the Church has long opposed every nuclear weapon and stands for peace.
- Vatican officials defended the Pope’s role, and Italian leaders Antonio Tajani and Matteo Salvini publicly backed him against Trump's charges.
- Rubio said the visit was planned before the flare-up and argued the president's words were misunderstood, as he seeks to steady ties.
- A late-April YouGov poll found more Americans, and an even larger share of Catholics, side with the Pope on Iran, signaling political risk for the White House and Republicans.