The vice president said Pope Leo XIV should “be careful” when discussing theology.

The View’s Alyssa Farah Griffin slams JD Vance’s comments about the Pope: ‘I couldn’t think of a dumber fight to pick ahead of the midterms’

The vice president said Pope Leo XIV should "be careful" when discussing theology.

By Sharareh Drury

April 16, 2026 2:23 p.m. ET

Alyssa Farah Griffin; JD Vance. Credit:

ABC; Jamie McCarthy/Getty

- Vice President JD Vance said Pope Leo XIV should "be careful" when he talks about theology.**

- *The View*'s Alyssa Farah Griffin, a former White House staffer, emphasized why Vance's comments ahead of already tense midterms make "zero sense."

- The vice president claimed the Pope was wrong to say Jesus "is never on the side of those who once wielded the sword."

*The View’*s Alyssa Farah Griffin is calling out Vice President JD Vance for his criticisms of Pope Leo XIV.

During Thursday's episode of ABC's daytime talk show, Griffin said Vance's comments about the Pope during a recent Turning Point USA event in Athens, Ga., — such as the pontiff needing to “be careful” when discussing theology — were not necessary just months ahead of what is expected to be a tense midterm election.

Vance, who is Catholic, took issue with an April 10 post on the Pope's X account, which read, “God does not bless any conflict. Anyone who is a disciple of Christ, the Prince of Peace, is never on the side of those who once wielded the sword and today drops bombs."

The Pope added amid the ongoing Iran war, “Military action will not create space for freedom or times of #Peace, which comes only from the patient promotion of coexistence and dialogue among peoples."

The *Hillbilly Elegy *author disagreed with the Pope discussing politics, noting that the religious leader was ignoring the U.S. helping defeat the Nazis during World War II.**

"Was God on the side of the Americans who liberated France from the Nazis? Was God on the side of the Americans who liberated Holocaust camps and liberated those, those innocent people, you know, those who had survived the Holocaust? I certainly think the answer is yes," Vance said at the event.**

Pope Leo XIV in 2025.

Simone Risoluti/Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.***

Griffin, who is a former White House director of strategic communications, defended the Pope's remarks while asking her co-hosts, "Isn't it the Pope's job to weigh in on theology?"

"Talking about it from a political and a PR perspective, I can't think of a dumber fight to pick ahead of the midterms than with the Christian voting base, the evangelical Christians who've been with Trump, but then with the Catholic base," Griffin added.

Griffin, who was press secretary for Vice President Mike Pence and special assistant to President Donald Trump from 2017 to 2019, emphasized that Catholics could be a large swing vote during the midterms, noting, "While they are with Donald Trump on issues like opposing abortion, they're also pro-immigrant, pro-refugees."

JD Vance warns that extraterrestrials are demons: 'I'm going to get to the bottom of this'

JD Vance supports Trump criticizing reporter for not smiling after Epstein files question

She added, "So right now, heading into midterms that already look bleak for Republicans, this is the last fight you want to be picking. It makes zero sense."

The midterm elections will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 3.**

Original Article on Source

Source: “EW Talk”