Catholic Bishops Say White House Visit Was Used for Politics, and Milwaukee's Archbishop Has Apologized

Two Catholic bishops who prayed with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Oct. 22 have said the visit was used for politics, and Milwaukee's archbishop has apologized for taking part.

Archbishop Jeffrey Grob issued his statement on Sunday, Oct. 25. Bishop William Joensen of Des Moines, Iowa, had already said in an Oct. 24 statement that the meeting was exploited for partisan political purposes. The visit by 12 bishops came less than two weeks before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, with early voting underway in Iowa and other states.

What they were promised

Grob said the Heritage Foundation arranged the visit, the second of two such gatherings, and that the bishops were invited in mid-September. They were told it would be a private discussion, that several Catholic members of Trump's Cabinet might appear, and that they might pray privately with the president.

Joensen said the invitation offered a chance to discuss immigration, visas for international clergy, private education tax credits, and a culture of life against access to abortion medications. Grob listed immigration enforcement, religious worker visas and human dignity among the matters the bishops came to raise.

Then the cameras

The bishops spent about 90 minutes with White House staff and policy advisers before being taken into the Oval Office, Grob said. Trump greeted them and gave them commemorative tokens. They were then directed to stand behind the president and pray, and staff took photographs.

A video was also recorded, and Grob said the group did not know it was being taken. Margo Martin, a special assistant and communications adviser to Trump, posted the video and photos online. Grob said the bishops never gave permission for the posting.

An apology from Milwaukee

"I feel a heavy sadness, not only over the pain I caused, but also for the fact that something so sacred to a group of religious leaders, prayer to our Heavenly Father, would be manipulated in that way," Grob said. The bishops came in good faith to pray with a president, he said, "not to pose for a political photo opportunity to benefit the few. We should never have been put in that position by the White House."

Grob said the meeting was in no way an endorsement of the president, his policies or his party. He said he went with reservations, wished he had heeded them, and apologized for any damage his actions had done.

Joensen said many actions of the Trump administration "are blatantly at odds with our Catholic faith." "I wish I had been more shrewd and less simple, like those who exploited our meeting for partisan political purposes," he said.

Archbishop James Golka of Denver, who led the prayer, told the Denver Catholic he had felt reservations too. He understood that many people saw the video, posted twelve days before an election, as an endorsement, and said that was never his intention.

The White House response

Asked about Grob's claim that the images were shared without consent, White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers answered with a statement about Trump's record. "There has never been a greater president for Catholic Americans than President Trump," Rogers said. The statement listed pardons for pro-life activists and protections for parents' rights, and did not address the bishops' criticism.

A Pew Research Center survey cited by USA Today found Trump's approval among U.S. Catholics fell from 47% in January 2025 to 30%. Bishops from Rapid City, Dallas, Des Moines and Birmingham took part, along with the retired bishop of Kansas City.