JD Vance and Pope Francis put drama to one side as they finally meet

JD Vance finally met Pope Francis, as the converted Catholic had gotten into a public spat with the Papal leader since being sworn in as American Vice President

Pope Francis meets with U.S. Vice President JD Vance and delegation during an audience at Casa Santa Marta on April 20, 2025 in Vatican City, Vatican.

US VP JD Vance briefly with Pope Francis on Sunday to exchange Easter greetings, after they got into a long-distance tangle over the Trump administration’s migrant deportation plans – amid talks the Pope may have snubbed the VP.

Vance’s motorcade entered Vatican City through a side gate and parked near Francis’ hotel residence while Easter Mass was being celebrated in St. Peter’s Square. Francis, who has greatly cut back his workload to recover from a near-fatal case of pneumonia, delegated the celebration of the Mass to another cardinal.

The Vatican said they met for a few minutes at the Domus Santa Marta “to exchange Easter greetings.” Vance’s office said that they met, but provided no further details. In all, Vance’s motorcade was on Vatican territory for 17 minutes.

Vance and the pope have tangled sharply over migration and the Trump administration’s plans to deport migrants en masse. Francis has made caring for migrants a hallmark of his papacy.

Vatican Secretary of State cardinal Pietro Parolin meets with U.S. Vice President JD Vance during an audience at the Apostolic Palac on April 19, 2025 in Vatican City, Vatican.

JD Vance met with Pietro Parolin instead of Pope Francis (Image: (Photo by Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty Images))

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Just days before he was hospitalized in February, Francis blasted the Trump administration’s deportation plans, warning that they would deprive migrants of their inherent dignity.

In a letter to U.S. bishops, Francis also appeared to respond to Vance directly for having claimed that Catholic doctrine justified such policies.

Vance has acknowledged Francis’ criticism but has said he will continue to defend his views. During a Feb. 28 appearance at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington, Vance didn’t address the issue specifically but called himself a “baby Catholic” and acknowledged there are “things about the faith that I don’t know.”

Pope Francis is one of many parties that Vance has gotten into an altercation with since he was sworn in as VP. His list of targets thus far includes the UK, France, China, and random accounts online who he has accused of having “low IQs”.

His wife Usha has asked him to stop getting into fights online, but to no avail.