US President Donald Trump made a joke about the approaching selection of the new Pope after recently traveling to Rome to attend Pope Francis’s funeral. Trump gave a humorous reaction when asked about his opinions on the leader of the Catholic Church. He joked, “I’d like to be Pope. That would be my number one choice.”
He then discussed Pope Francis’s possible successors in a more somber tone. President Donald Trump mentioned Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the Archbishop of New York, as a person who could be “very good” for the position of Pope. However he did not name a favorite.
“No, I don’t know, I have no preference, guys. I might say we have a Cardinal that happens to be out of a place called New York who is very good. So we’ll see what happens,” Trump added.
Following Trump’s lead, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham posted a recommendation for the College of Cardinals on the social networking site X. “I was excited to hear that the President is open to the idea of being the next Pope,” Graham posted on Tuesday.
“This would truly be a dark horse candidate, but I would ask the papal conclave and Catholic faithful to keep an open mind about this possibility!” he added. Online responses to the US President’s comments were rife, with his followers giving Pope Donald a “thumbs up.” Others posted AI images and memes of Trump dressed in full papal garb on social media.
Reporter: Who do you want to be the next Pope?
Trump: “I’d like to be Pope. That’d be my number one choice.”🤡 pic.twitter.com/gTIUBhXjMG
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) April 29, 2025
Pope Francis was the first Latin American pope to be sworn in, and Trump and his wife Melania traveled to Rome last weekend to attend his funeral. It is clear that the President, who has three marriages, will not be appointed to lead the Catholic Church.
Pope Francis passed away this month, and the almost 2,000-year-old organization is searching for a new spiritual leader. With no obvious leader in sight, 135 Catholic cardinals will soon be required to attend a secret conclave in order to select the next pope.
Today, Trump said his “number one choice” is to be the next Pope.
This is the guy who couldn’t name a single Bible verse. pic.twitter.com/Mz5pn30BdZ
— Max Flugrath🗳️ (@MaxFlugrath) April 30, 2025
According to some reports, Timothy Dolan, a cardinal from New York, is not a candidate to succeed Francis. The United States has never produced a pope. Cardinal Timothy Dolan is a member of the New York Archdiocese. According to his biography, Pope Benedict XVI named him Archbishop of New York in 2009. Cardinal Dolan was also present in the conclave in 2013 that chose Pope Francis following the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI.
