Members of the MAGA movement in the United States have hit out at the new pope over social media posts he made in which he appeared to criticise President Donald Trump and his deputy JD Vance.
Robert Prevost, a 69-year-old from Chicago, became the first ever US pontiff when he was chosen by his fellow cardinals on Thursday, less than three weeks after the death of his predecessor, Pope Francis.
Trump was quick to celebrate Prevost's appointment, sending his congratulations and expressing a desire to meet the pontiff, who is now known by the name Leo XIV.
"What excitement, and what a great honour for our country. I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV. It will be a very meaningful moment!" Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform.
However, not everyone in Trump's orbit was pleased by the news from the Vatican.
Laura Loomer, a far-right activist who was invited by Trump to the Oval Office in early April, called the new pope "anti-Trump, anti-MAGA, pro-open borders and a total marxist like Pope Francis."
Her criticism came in response to an article allegedly reposted by Prevost on X.
A verified account under his name shared a Washington Post opinion piece written by Cardinal Timothy Dolan in 2015.
The article was titled "Why Donald Trump's anti-immigrant rhetoric is so problematic."
In February, the same account reposted an article — written by the National Catholic Reporter (NCR) — that criticised the US Vice President JD Vance over his comments on the Christian concept of "ordo amoris."
"There's this old school – and I think it's a very Christian concept by the way – that you love your family and then you love your neighbour, and then you love your community, and then you love your fellow citizens in your own country, and then after that, you can focus and prioritise the rest of the world," Vance said earlier this year.
His interpretation of the doctrine was widely condemned by leading religious figures, with the NCR article shared by Prevost's account concluding "JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn't ask us to rank our love for others."
But unlike Loomer, some Trump allies tried to reserve judgement.
"Is it too much to hope that some 20-year-old ran the new pope's X account and he never looked at it?" asked former Fox News host Megyn Kelly.
