ROME – Pope Francis on Friday described the choice US voters must make in the presidential election as one between the “lesser of two evils,” deeming former President Donald Trump’s anti-migrant policies and Vice President Kamala Harris’ support of abortion rights as both being “against life.”

“One must choose the lesser of two evils. Who is the lesser of two evils? That lady or that gentleman? I don’t know,” Francis said during a press conference on the papal plane, referring to Harris and Trump. “Everyone with a conscience should think on this and do it.” Francis has been more vocal about politics than his predecessors and has moved to make the Catholic Church more open. While he has consistently and strongly defended the Catholic Church’s teaching that abortion is the deliberate destruction of a human life, Francis has also insisted it cannot be isolated from other issues concerning human life, including immigration.

“To send migrants away, to leave them wherever you want, to leave them … it’s something terrible, there is evil there. To send away a child from the womb of the mother is an assassination, because there is life. We must speak about these things clearly,” he said. Francis has previously weighed in on political issues, signaling more progressive stances by allowing priests to forgive abortions, authorizing blessings for same-sex couples and repeatedly warning about climate change.

He has challenged Catholic bishops in the US who have insisted that abortion is the “pre-eminent” issue, arguing that the plight of migrants is also about the defense of life. In 2016, Francis described then-presidential candidate Trump’s plan to build a wall to stop migrants from crossing the US-Mexico border as “not Christian.” And when bishops were debating in 2021 whether to deny communion to public figures who support abortion rights, including President Joe Biden, Francis urged them to make their decisions from a “pastoral” viewpoint and  not a political one. The pope has said he has never denied communion to anyone.

Francis has criticized couples who choose to have pets rather than children, aligning with views expressed by Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance, a converted Catholic who has derided women without kids as “childless cat ladies” and described those in the country’s “leadership class” who don’t have children as “more sociopathic.”  US Catholics also have a range of views. According to Pew Research, 52% of Catholic registered voters describe themselves as being or leaning Republican, while 44% say they are or lean Democrat. Catholic voters were split in 2020, with 50% voting for Biden and 49% supporting Trump, according to Pew. But a majority of Catholics – 61% – believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases. (CNN)