Pope Francis criticized the Trump administration's mass deportation plans, emphasizing the dignity of migrants and warning that such actions will have negative consequences. The pope's letter to U.S. bishops appeared to challenge Vice President JD Vance's defense of deportation policies based on religious arguments. U.S. border czar Tom Homan responded by suggesting that the Vatican's walls should preclude the pope from commenting on immigration enforcement. Francis stressed the biblical command to welcome strangers and criticized measures that equate migrants' illegal status with criminality, calling the deportation of vulnerable individuals a major crisis. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops expressed gratitude for the pope's stance and called for a more humane immigration system.