A MAGA pundit has accused former President Barack Obama and Pope Leo XIV of conspiring to damage Republican prospects in the midterm elections. Hal Lambert, CEO of Point Bridge Capital, made the claim on CNN's NewsNight, suggesting the two were trying to turn Catholics against Donald Trump.
Lambert cited a recent meeting between David Axelrod, Obama's former advisor, and the pope as evidence. 'David Axelrod goes and visits Pope Leo last week. They're talking about Obama going to visit Pope Leo. Pope Leo is from Chicago,' Lambert said. 'All of a sudden, now, Pope Leo is out attacking Trump and the policies of the United States and Israel.'
Host Abby Phillip noted 'a lot of flaws in this argument,' but Lambert insisted there were 'no flaws.' He also criticised the pope's call for peace in the US-Iran conflict as 'milquetoast.' The Vatican confirmed the April 9 meeting, but neither party disclosed details. Axelrod said it was 'scheduled months ago and unrelated to any prospective meeting with President Obama.'
Whether Obama will meet the pope is unknown, but in February he expressed interest. Trump has faced backlash for attacking the pope, calling him 'WEAK' on crime and posting an image of himself as Jesus, later deleted. The pope responded he had 'no fear' of the Trump administration.
