Pope Leo Issues Dire Warning on Democracy After Trump Attack

Pope Leo XIV warned on Tuesday that democracy risks becoming a “majoritarian tyranny” if not rooted in moral law.The warning came in a letter addressed to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences.“Far from being a mere procedure, democracy recognizes the dignity of every person and calls each citizen to participate responsibly in the pursuit of the common good,” Leo wrote. “Democracy remains healthy, however, only when rooted in the moral law and a true vision of the human person. Lacking this foundation, it risks becoming either a majoritarian tyranny or a mask for the dominance of economic and technological elites.”While the statement didn’t mention President Trump by name, it’s hard not to see Leo’s warning as the latest installment of their ideological feud. Trump says the pope, of all people, is “weak on crime,” and doesn’t understand why his Holiness is opposed to an illegal and deadly war on Iran. Leo has responded with the case for a democracy rooted in Catholic social teaching that “regards power not as an end in itself, but as a means ordered toward the common good.”The letter also comes just a day after the pope stated that he was not a politician and had “no fear” of the Trump administration. Read his letter here.