Trump cancels Catholic charity contract worth millions after feud with Pope Leo

Trump cancels Catholic charity contract worth millions after feud with Pope LeoCatholic charity leader Thomas Wenski said the move would destroy the Florida charity, which provides critical help for unaccompanied children, within three monthsNewsLiam Doyle14:21, 17 Apr 2026View 4 ImagesTrump has rescinded critical funding for a Catholic charity(Image: Andrew Leyden/NurPhoto/Shutterstock)Donald Trump has turned up the heat on his feud with Pope Leo in a bizarre move targeting the Catholic Church's support for migrants.‌The US president, who this week in an extraordinary broadside slammed the Vatican chief as "weak on crime" and "even worse on foreign policy", has rescinded federal funding for a charity that aids migrants. The Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Miami, in Florida, has for the last 60 years provided housing and assistance to migrant children, aided by $11 million (£8.1 million) in funding from the federal government.‌Without that, it has been warned, the charity could be forced to close in a year, with the archbishop of Miami branding the decision "baffling".‌View 4 ImagesTrump has been repeatedly disparaging of the first American Pope(Image: Andrew Leyden/ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock)READ MORE: White House official clarifies Donald Trump's stance on Iran's World Cup spotREAD MORE: Russian drones 'breach NATO airspace' in attack on UkraineThe Daily Beast reports that the funding was withdrawn by the Department of Health and Human services as the number of children under the care of the archdiocese had decreased. It claimed the number of beneficiaries has dropped down to 1,900 under Donald Trump from 22,000 under his predecessor Joe Biden.The move, it added, was first discussed in March, a month before the president started feuding with the first American Pope, whose real name is Robert Francis Provost. Archbishop of Miami Thomas Wenski predicted that, without the vital funding, the more th...