By Daniel Payne
CNA Staff, Jan 22, 2025 / 15:15 pm
The president of the U.S. bishops’ conference on Wednesday criticized some of President Donald Trump’s initial executive orders on key issues including immigration and capital punishment, warning that harm could be done to “the most vulnerable among us.”
Trump, upon taking office on Monday, signed a series of executive orders that included tough restrictions on immigration, a directive in favor of the death penalty, a withdrawal from a key global climate pact, and an order affirming the reality of biological sex.
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) president Archbishop Timothy Broglio on Wednesday said in a statement that he took issue with some of the orders, calling them “deeply troubling.”
“Some provisions contained in the executive orders, such as those focused on the treatment of immigrants and refugees, foreign aid, expansion of the death penalty, and the environment, are deeply troubling and will have negative consequences, many of which will harm the most vulnerable among us,” Broglio wrote.
Regarding the executive order on biological sex, Broglio expressed agreement with Trump.
“Other provisions in the executive orders can be seen in a more positive light, such as recognizing the truth about each human person as male or female,” Broglio said.
Broglio stressed that neither the Catholic Church nor the USCCB is aligned with “any political party.” The Church’s teachings “remain unchanged” regardless of political leadership, he said.
The prelate pointed to the 2025 Jubilee Year and said the U.S.
