Trump is beefing with the Pope while running a Middle East war
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Rubio flew to the Vatican to smooth things over with Pope Leo XIV after Trump publicly accused the pope of tolerating Iran's nuclear program and 'endangering' Catholics. The peace offering: a crystal tennis ball paperweight. The pope gave him an olive wood pen. Italy just denied the U.S. use of a military base for combat operations. The kicker: the administration that can't keep the pope onside is the one running a war in the Middle East.
Hypocrisy callout — specific named actors, absurd specific detail (the tennis ball paperweight), and a pointed implication about diplomatic collapse. Fresh lane, and the papal angle is inherently more irreverent than anything in the recent window.
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Marco Rubio flew to the Vatican this week to do damage control after Trump publicly accused Pope Leo XIV of tolerating Iran's nuclear program and "endangering" Catholics. The peace offering Rubio brought: a crystal tennis ball paperweight. The pope gave him a pen made from olive wood. A tree symbolizing peace. The Vatican was not subtle.
Cardinal Parolin, the Vatican's Secretary of State, said Trump's attacks on the pope were "a bit strange, to say the least." That's Vatican-speak for what the hell is wrong with you. Meanwhile Italy, a NATO ally, recently denied the U.S. use of a military base for combat operations. That's the ally you need when you're prosecuting a war in the Middle East, and they're saying no.
This is the administration running a war while burning every diplomatic relationship it touches. The pope is too dovish. The Italians won't share their bases. Parolin had to say out loud that the U.S. is still a "key partner" like he was trying to convince himself. They sent Rubio to the Vatican with a tennis ball paperweight. That's the peace envoy. That's what we've got.
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trump picked a fight with the pope and sent rubio with a crystal tennis ball to fix it #politics #foreignpolicy #trump #imperialism
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- Hero image done fal · fal-ai/flux-pro/v1.1-ultrat6U4EWk8rMJW_hero.png$0.06api 25.2sMay 9, 4:08 PM
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