Overview

• Speaking to reporters outside his Castel Gandolfo residence on Sept. 30, Pope Leo called some U.S. treatment of migrants “inhuman” and said he doubts such positions align with being pro-life.
• He added that those who oppose abortion yet support the death penalty are “not really pro-life,” underscoring Catholic teaching on life from conception to natural death.
• The White House responded that President Trump is keeping his promise to deport criminal illegal aliens, according to spokesperson Abigail Jackson.
• Asked about Chicago’s plan to honor Sen. Dick Durbin, the pope urged looking at the senator’s overall work while acknowledging he was not deeply familiar with the specific situation.
• The Archdiocese of Chicago later said Durbin declined to receive the Keep Hope Alive award, and Cardinal Blase Cupich said many U.S. Catholics feel politically homeless.