Democracy Forward wants to know if the Trump administration’s cancellation of an $11 million grant to a Catholic organization resulted from the president’s spat with Pope Leo XIV over the Iran war.
Critics of the president believe the award was withdrawn because the pope condemned the American attack on Iran and then said he did not fear the U.S. after Trump hurled insults at him on social media.
The contract with the Catholic Archbishop of Miami and administered by Catholic Charities was used to shelter and serve the unaccompanied children of immigrants.
The Department of Health and Human Services claimed the grant ended March 31 and wasn’t renewed as part of a pre-determined plan to consolidate locations housing unaccompanied minors due to a decrease in illegal border crossings, USA Today reported.
In response, Democracy Forward announced it filed a Freedom of Information Act request with HHS to examine any records, communications and internal directives connected to the cancelled grant.
Skye Perryman
“The idea that federal officials would yank millions of dollars from an organization caring for children because of the president’s self-inflicted messaging disagreement with the pope should alarm anyone who believes in democracy, the rule of law, religious liberty and basic accountability in government,” Democracy Forward President Skye Perryman said. “If this decision was driven by retaliation or ideology instead of law and facts, that is a profound abuse of power, and we intend to get the answers.”
The nonprofit legal group has won legal actions in similar cases before, including for the vindictive termination of funds against the American Bar Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics, Perryman explained. “Decisions like this must be grounded in evidence, expertise and the public interest, not politics, not pressure and not personal grievances, and we intend to get to the bottom of what is happening here.”
The dispute began Feb. 28, the day the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran. Leo expressed “deep concern” and the next day urged both sides to “stop the spiral of violence before it becomes an irreparable abyss.”
An April 12 60 Minutes segment highlighted Leo’s criticism of the war and mass deportations in the U.S. The episode included comments against the war from U.S.-based cardinals.
Trump immediately posted a social media rant more than 300 words long criticizing the pontiff. “Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” it began. “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. It’s hurting him very badly and, more importantly, it’s hurting the Catholic Church!”
Then the grant was cancelled.
Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski is among those questioning the sudden end of the 60-year relationship between Catholic Charities and the federal government. That partnership began during Operation “Pedro Pan” in 1960 when the Catholic social services organization helped resettle 14,000 Cuban children sent to the U.S. alone.
The group’s facility in Palmetto Bay can house up to 81 minors and assists with foster care, family reunification, psychological counseling and other supportive services, Wensky said. “It is true that the number of unaccompanied minors entering the country has decreased. It is also understandable that some programs may be scaled back or even eliminated.
“But given the history and reputation of the (Palmetto Bay facility), it is baffling that the U.S. government would shut down a program that it would be hard-pressed to replicate at the level of competence and excellence that Catholic Charities has achieved if and when future waves of unaccompanied minors reach our shores.”
Wensky said the archbishop of Miami has requested the federal government to “review of the decision to shut down this legacy and signature program.”