Brandon Johnson took 45 people to Italy on Chicago taxpayer money.
Now Trump is demanding someone explain this to Pope Leo XIV.
And what Johnson actually asked the pope to do will leave you speechless.
What Johnson Actually Asked the Pope to Do
Johnson led a 46-person delegation to the Vatican on May 28 and met privately with Pope Leo XIV – the Chicago-born pontiff who has spent months publicly feuding with President Trump over immigration and the Iran war.
The trip wasn't a spiritual pilgrimage.
Johnson told the Chicago Sun-Times before he left that he planned to ask the pope to use his pulpit "to support reparations for local descendants of African American slaves."
He also told reporters he and the pope "discussed ICE" – specifically how Johnson's executive orders shield Chicago from federal immigration enforcement.
Then he called Trump a "tyrant" at a press briefing in Rome.
https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/2060823397873971684?s=20
Johnson brought a 46-member delegation – city officials, a treasurer, business leaders, and George Floyd family attorney Antonio Romanucci.
He handed the pope a key to Chicago, an invitation to deliver Mass in Grant Park, and a Cubs hat.
Trump saw the photos and went directly to Truth Social.
"Someone should explain to the Pope that the Mayor of Chicago is useless," Trump wrote, adding, "Iran cannot have a Nuclear Weapon!"
The Mayor Chicago Actually Has
Johnson's office fired back, accusing Trump of waging a "blasphemous war in Iran" and making it harder for working families.
What Johnson's office did not mention: Chicago is staring down a projected $1.16 billion budget deficit in 2027 – with an additional $1.23 billion shortfall projected for 2028.
The city's police department has overspent its budget in five of the last six years – burning through more than $501 million in unanticipated taxpayer expenses.
https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/2059253010383978906?s=20
Johnson spent months fighting with his own City Council over taxes, failed to pass a corporate head tax he wanted, and watched his budget negotiations spiral out of control two years running.
His own aldermen don't trust his financial judgment.
But he had time to fly to Rome with 45 people in tow to lobby the pope on reparations and sanctuary city policy.
Why Trump Is Right and the Pope Should Know It
This is what Johnson actually asked the world's most powerful Catholic leader to bless: ignoring federal immigration law, blocking ICE from a city hemorrhaging cash, and demanding reparations payments Chicago cannot afford.
Pope Leo has been feuding with Trump for months – calling Trump's Iran policies "truly unacceptable," warning against a "delusion of omnipotence," and criticizing the administration's immigration enforcement as potentially not "pro-life."
Trump has pushed back hard.
"I don't want a Pope who thinks it's terrible that America attacked Venezuela," Trump wrote in April. "Leo should get his act together as Pope, use Common Sense, stop catering to the Radical Left, and focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician."
Johnson just handed the pope a fresh round of ammunition – straight from the most mismanaged major city in America.
Think about what that means for Trump.
https://twitter.com/FoxNews_Flash/status/2061237645846708480?s=20
Pope Leo has been using his pulpit to publicly undercut the president on immigration, Iran, and Venezuela for months.
Now the mayor of a sanctuary city flew to Rome, lobbied the pope to back reparations, bragged about his executive orders protecting Chicago from ICE, and called the president a "tyrant" on Vatican soil.
And the pope welcomed every word of it.
Leo is not a neutral spiritual figure caught in a political crossfire.
He received Johnson, encouraged his anti-ICE executive orders, and handed a radical Democrat mayor a global stage to attack a sitting American president.
That's not pastoral care.
That's a political operation wearing a collar.
Trump saw it clearly – which is why he went to Truth Social immediately.
The only question is whether American Catholics are watching closely enough to see it too.
Sources:
- Lindsay Kornick, "Trump takes aim at Pope Leo XIV meeting with 'useless' Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson at Vatican," Fox News, May 31, 2026.
- "Mayor Brandon Johnson, Chicago delegation meet with Pope Leo XIV in Rome," CBS Chicago, May 28, 2026.
- "Mayor Brandon Johnson talks Chicago crime, budget deficit, CPS funding, sanctuary city lawsuit," ABC7 Chicago, July 14, 2025.
- "Mayor Brandon Johnson says he faces $1.15 billion hole in 2026 Chicago budget," Yahoo News/Chicago Sun-Times.
- "Chicago Police Department Overspent Its Budget By $501M Over 5 Years," WTTW Chicago, November 5, 2025.
- "Pope Leo XIV meets with Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson," EWTN News, May 28, 2026.
- "Trump slams Pope Leo as 'weak,' 'terrible' after Iran war criticism," Axios, April 13, 2026.