Cardinal Robert McElroy, Archbishop of Washington, D.C. and close ally of Pope Leo XIV, has strongly criticized the Trump administration's immigration enforcement policies, calling the mass deportations of undocumented migrants "inhumane" and "morally repugnant."
Speaking to CNN from Rome, McElroy argued that the current policies go beyond legitimate border control and instead aim to instill fear among millions of immigrants:
"It's right to be able to control our borders. However, what's going on now is something far beyond that. It is a mass, indiscriminate deportation of men and women and children and families which literally rips families apart and is intended to do so"
McElroy went on to say that the "mechanism" being used was the "creation of fear" among 10 million undocumented people in the US, "the great majority" of whom had worked hard and contributed to society.
McElroy emphasized that the Vatican's global message on immigration, shaped by Leo and Pope Francis before him, has direct relevance to the U.S. "This is simply not only incompatible with Catholic teaching, it's inhumane," McElroy said.
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The cardinal also highlighted the fear being created among undocumented immigrants, saying many are now afraid to attend church following the administration's decision to remove protections against arrests in sensitive locations. "What is behind this?" he asked. "I fear... a sense that the people coming now are of a different kind... the refrain has been the same—'these are inferior people'—and that's what's going on now."
His remarks come amid broader criticism from Catholic leaders across the country. On World Refugee Day, Bishop Michael Pham of San Diego led a group of religious leaders to observe federal immigration court proceedings. "They are human beings," Pham said. "Treat people with kindness, compassion, dignity, respect."
Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, told The New York Times last week that he implored Congress to "make drastic changes" to Mr. Trump's "big, beautiful bill" despite its anti-abortion provisions. He wrote that the bill failed to protect families including "by promoting an enforcement-only approach to immigration and eroding access to legal protections."
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