Maga Catholics hope for a ‘Trump-style Pope’: ideological clash after Francis’ death

In the US, conservatives close to Trump hope for a less progressive pontiff. But the composition of the conclave seems to favour a continuity with Francis’ reformist agenda

The death of Pope Francis has rekindled tensions within the Catholic world, particularly in the United States, where a section of the electorate close to Donald Trump – the so-called Maga Catholics – looks to the upcoming conclave with the hope of a reversal. The declared objective is to elect a pontiff who will openly oppose the reformist openings of the Argentine pope, in favour of a more rigid line adhering to traditional doctrine.

Summing up this position is Jesse Romero, a Catholic podcaster from Phoenix, who has called for ‘a Trump-style pope’, capable of restoring Christian values according to a more conservative interpretation. Even harsher criticism came from Roger Stone, Trump’s historic advisor, who called the posthumous praise of the pontiff ‘nauseating’ and even questioned his legitimacy.

The opposition to Francis’ pontificate is rooted in a series of choices deemed unacceptable by large conservative sectors: the blessings to homosexual couples, the commitment on climate change, the openness to migrants, the liturgical reform with the downsizing of the use of Latin. A discontent that has structured itself over time, also fostered by a generational change among the American clergy: a recent survey by the Catholic Project indicates that over 80% of priests ordained since 2020 define themselves as conservative.

Universities such as the Franciscan University of Steubenville and Ave Maria University have formed a new traditionalist ecclesiastical elite, increasingly influential in US Catholic circles.

But Francis, even in the last years of his pontificate, has responded firmly to these thrusts: he removed the Texan bishop Joseph Strickland, revoked the Vatican salary and lodgings of Cardinal Raymond Burke, author of the notorious ‘dubia’ on Amoris Laetitia, and openly condemned the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

The future of the Church will be decided at the conclave, but the majority of US cardinal electors – six out of ten – were appointed by Francis himself and largely share his pastoral vision. ‘It is more likely that the next pope will be a Francis II,’ admitted John Yep, leader of the Catholics for Catholics group.

Nevertheless, Maga Catholics are not giving up their cultural battle: they dream of a pontiff capable of ‘healing the fractures in the Church’ and curbing, in their view, modernist tendencies. But for now, at least in the College of Cardinals, the numbers seem to be in favour of continuity.

THE LATEST NEWS

• International-News

Pedro Sánchez Denies Health Rumors Published by Libertad Digital

26 Febbraio 2026

Spain’s prime minister rejects claims he is undergoing medical treatment in Madrid, accusing right-wing opponents of spreading false reports about...

Read More

• International-News

Poison That Killed Aleksei Navalny Traced to SC Signal and GosNIIOKhT

26 Febbraio 2026

Investigations reveal the neurotoxin epibatidine used in Navalny’s February 2024 death was produced at SC Signal and transferred to GosNIIOKhT...

Read More

• International-News

Hillary Clinton Testifies in Congress as Epstein Investigation Intensifies

26 Febbraio 2026

Hillary Clinton testifies before the House Oversight Committee from her Chappaqua home, denying encounters with Jeffrey Epstein and urging a...

Read More

• International-News

Borge Brende Resigns WEF as the Clintons Testimony Advances in Jeffrey Epstein Case

26 Febbraio 2026

Borge Brende steps down from the World Economic Forum amid Hillary and Bill Clinton’s testimony in the Jeffrey Epstein investigation...

Read More

• International-News

FBI reports tied to sexual assault allegations against Donald Trump missing from Epstein files release

26 Febbraio 2026

New York Times reports that three interview summaries referenced in DOJ inventory were not included in published documents Among the...

Read More

• International-News

What happened to Sarah Ferguson? She sought treatment at Paracelsus Recovery

25 Febbraio 2026

The Duchess of York has been in Zurich, receiving mental health care following renewed scrutiny over the Epstein files Questions...

Read More

(Photo: © AndKronos)