Asked to respond to the criticism, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that, “President Trump flew to Italy to pay his respects for Pope Francis and attend his funeral, and he has been a staunch champion for Catholics and religious liberty.”

Trump took to his social media platform, Truth Social, late on Friday, May 2, to share an image of himself in the traditional papal clothing. The official White House social media account later reposted the image on X. The image garnered a mixed response, with one critic saying it was " rather offensive for Catholics."

A cardinal predicted that the selection process “will be short” for the next pope to succeed the late Pope Francis, who died April 21 at age 88 after months of health complications. Cardinal Gregorio Rosa Chávez of El Salvador told ABC News on Friday that the Vatican is looking for “Francis 2” in a successor as cardinals prepare to kick off the conclave week.

The Catholic Church’s cardinals have called on the faithful around the world to pray for them as they prepare to enter the conclave next week to elect the next pope. The appeal came Wednesday after the College of Cardinals’ seventh general congregation — the daily meetings leading up to the start of the conclave on