Catholic archbishop apologizes for meeting with Trump

The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Milwaukee Jeffrey Grob released a public statement Sunday expressing regret for a meeting with President Donald Trump and 11 other bishops last week. Grob said he and other bishops attended the Thursday meeting in good faith and spent time praying for the president in the Oval Office, but he felt manipulated into what became a photo opportunity for the administration, he said.

A special assistant to the president, Margo Martin, posted a 27-second clip of 12 archbishops and bishops surrounding Trump in prayer, thanking God for Trump’s leadership and asking for protection and blessing for the nation.

In his apology, Grob said that the video was posted by the Trump administration without the Catholic leaders’ consent, and he added that the meeting was not an endorsement of the president, his policies, or his party. Grob said he and the other bishops were told the meeting was to be a private discussion and an opportunity to pray privately with the president.

What was Grob’s intent for the meeting? The archbishop said the meeting, arranged by the Heritage Foundation, was meant to discuss matters of importance to the church, including immigration enforcement, religious worker visas, and human dignity. He said he wanted to take the opportunity to use his voice to improve the lives of God’s children, and it seemed right to pray for the president in person.

What happened at the meeting? After a 90-minute discussion with White House domestic policy staff and advisers, the Catholic leaders were ushered into the Oval Office and directed to stand behind the president and pray, Grob said. The White House staff took photos and a video without asking permission to publicly distribute or post them, Grob said.

What is Grob concerned about? After the video was posted online, Grob said he began to receive messages suggesting he had inadvertently participated in a political event less than two weeks before a national election. He also heard from some who felt wounded because of the ways they or their family had been harmed by the president’s policies, he said. The archbishop said he felt a heavy sadness that the bishops’ sacred prayer to God was manipulated by the White House. He said he did not intend to pose for a political photo op and expressed disappointment that the White House put the group in that position.

Another one of the Catholic leaders at the meeting, Bishop William Joensen of the Diocese of Des Moines in Iowa, also issued a statement expressing regret over his participation in a meeting that he believed was exploited for partisan political purposes.