'Not American, not Christian': Andy Beshear slams Trump over Pope Leo comments

Following President Donald Trump's Truth Social attack on Pope Leo XIV, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear shared sharp criticism of the GOP leader, calling his behaviour un-American, un-Christianlike, and not presidential. Beshear wasn't alone in slamming the President, as conservatives, religious figures, and Democrats have called out Trump's remarks on the Pope and the Iran war. 

Trump on Sunday attacked Pope Leo over his criticism of the U.S.-Israel war in Iran. Trump called Pope Leo "weak on crime" and "terrible for foreign policy" in a Truth Social post, adding, "I don't want a Pope who thinks it's OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon." He then shared an AI-generated image that seemingly depicted him as a Christ-like figure, wearing biblical-style clothing, with his hand on a bedridden man's head. While the post was deleted within a day, many criticized it as unacceptable behaviour.

"Last week, the President threatened to end a civilization. Now, he's attacking the Pope and posting an image of himself as Jesus," Beshear wrote in a post on X. "Not American. Not Christian. Not presidential," he added. Senator Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) also weighed in on the situation, writing that he finds "nothing about what the President said to be admirable." He added that about 20% to 30% of the country is Catholic, and if Trump attacks their religion, it could affect people's votes. "It's just not the kind of thing that the President should be doing," Paul added, while speaking to reporters, as per WHAS11.

Meanwhile, Pope Leo has also pushed back on the attack while calling for peace in the Middle East. "I do not look at my role as being political, a politician. I don't want to get into a debate with him. I don't think that the message of the gospel is meant to be abused in the way that some people are doing," the Pope told reporters as he visited Algeria during his ongoing tour of Africa. "To put my message on the same plane as what the president has attempted to do here, I think, is not understanding what the message of the Gospel is," Leo told The Associated Press. 

On the other hand, Trump on Monday denied that he was trying to look like God, claiming the image was supposed to show him as a doctor, but people misinterpreted it. "It's supposed to be me as a doctor making people better, and I do make people better," he told reporters at the White House, after the post was deleted. However, Trump doubled down on his criticism of Pope Leo, stating that he will not apologize for his statements. Claiming that the Pope was against everything he did in Iran, he said the pontiff won't be happy with the result either. "I think he's very weak on crime and other things, so I'm not going to apologize," Trump said, explaining that he was just responding to the Pope's public remarks.