Back from Asia, Pope accuses Trump and Harris of being “against life”

Back from a grueling trip to Asia and Oceania, the Pope on Friday criticized the candidates for the US presidential election in virulent terms, accusing Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris of being “against life” ;.

François spoke at length to journalists on the plane taking him back from Singapore to Rome after a marathon tour that saw him address large crowds in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore.

Asked about the choice facing American voters in the November 5 presidential election between former President Donald Trump, who has an anti-migrant rhetoric, and Vice President Kamala Harris, who defends the right to abortion, the Pope dismissed them as being against life.

“Both (candidates) are against life. Whether it's the one who sends back migrants, or the one who kills children. Both are against life,” he said.

“I'm not American, I can't vote there, but let's be clear, sending back migrants, denying them the opportunity to work, denying them welcome, is a sin, it's serious.”

“In political morality, in general, not voting is wrong. It's not good, we have to vote and we must choose the lesser evil. What is the lesser evil? ? This lady, or this gentleman ? I don't know, everyone has their own conscience,” added the 87-year-old Argentinian Jesuit.

La porte- speech from the White House, Karine Jean-Pierre, September 12, 2024 in Washington © AFP – ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS

Asked to comment on these remarks, the White House spokeswoman said that “the Pope speaks for himself.” “I have not spoken with the president about the Pope's specific comments on the upcoming elections,” added Karine Jean-Pierre.

The Argentine pontiff frequently speaks out about migrants, whose rejection by Western societies he denounces. He also does not fail to recall his firm opposition to abortion, which he compares to “murder”.

– Next trip –

Despite his advanced age and health problems, Francis appeared in great shape during his twelve-day trip to four countries in Southeast Asia and Oceania, the longest and most distant trip of his pontificate.

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Pope Francis during a mass at the National Stadium in Singapore, September 12, 2024 © AFP – Tiziana FABI

With unfailing dynamism, he covered 33,000 km on two continents, multiplying meetings and mass events.

A year after a major abdominal surgery, this ambitious journey had fueled doubts about the ability of Jorge Bergoglio, who will be 88 in December, to endure such an odyssey.

But neither the frenetic pace – sixteen speeches, up to eight hours of time difference – nor the tropical heat, nor the multiple official meetings seemed to bother the Argentine pope.

Francis even displayed astonishing resilience, culminating on Tuesday in a crowd bath in Dili, West Timor, among 600,000 elated people, after a two-and-a-half-hour mass in a humid and stifling heat, in this 98% Catholic country.

Pope Francis greets the faithful after a mass on the Esplanade of Tasitolu, in Dili, on September 10, 2024 in East Timor © POOL – Dita ALANGKARA

This 45th international trip confirms the importance of traveling abroad for this pastor in the field, who has always preferred meetings to the gold of the Vatican and for whom contact with the crowd remains an invigorating source of energy.

“In his mind, the pope does not feel tired but happy. It is a very different perspective, also very Christian, to see things,” the director of the press service of the Holy See, Matteo Bruni, told AFP.

This tour, initially planned for 2020 but postponed due to the pandemic, saw François address themes dear to him: dialogue with Islam in Indonesia, the fight against pedocriminality, environmental protection and the defense of the rights of migrant workers.

Pope Francis (l) during a mass at the Gelora Bung Karno stadium in Jakarta, on September 5, 2024 in Indonesia © POOL – Adi WEDA

From the Jakarta mosque to the crowded streets of Dili, the Pope will have recalled the importance he gives to the Global South and the “peripheries” of a globalized Church that he would like to be more open.

On September 26, the head of the Catholic Church will honor a new four-day trip to Luxembourg and Belgium, before continuing with the General Assembly of the Synod on the Future of the Church in October.

Francis announced on Friday, however, that he would not go to Paris for the reopening of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, restored after being damaged in a fire on April 15, 2019.

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