Tom Homan, who enforces strict border policies for Donald Trump, has chosen the next person to scold — Pope Leo. In a surprising interview, Homan, who said he was educated in a 1960s Catholic school, said he’d be “happy to sit down and explain” Catholic teachings to Pope Leo XIV. That’s the actual leader of the Catholic Church.
He might also explain tennis to Serena Williams.
It’s a shame Stephen Hawking isn’t alive because then Homan would explain physics to him.
Homan claims the Church is always in support of law enforcement, and the pope “should be, too.”
He even told Pope Leo to focus on “fixing the Catholic Church” rather than criticizing Trump’s large deportation efforts. After all, the Vicar of Christ needs to learn civics from a White House official.
Homan also said the Vatican is hypocritical, saying that people crossing the border would face harsher punishments there than in the U.S.
He also listed crime and fentanyl statistics to justify Trump’s strict border policies.
But here’s the issue: Catholic teachings aren’t based on what Tom Homan learned in school.
The U.S. bishops have made it clear.
The Church teaches that every person, including immigrants, has inherent dignity. They stated plainly: “Human dignity and national security are not in conflict.”
Pope Leo XIV has also called for welcoming strangers and protecting the vulnerable.
That’s not “anti–law enforcement.” That’s basic Christianity.
Yet Homan, who has often mocked Church leaders for supporting migrants, now claims to be the real protector of Catholic beliefs — even as he ignores the pope’s moral authority.
The situation is ironic: a government official publicly criticizing the leader of a global religion for being too kind.
While Homan gets upset, Pope Leo XIV stays focused on mercy and justice — values that are older than any immigration law and are rooted in the very Gospel Homan claims to support.
In Trump’s America, even the pope isn’t safe from a lecture.
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