WASHINGTON (OSV News) — Multiple U.S. bishops who attended an Oval Office meeting with President Donald Trump less than two weeks before the midterm elections offered their regrets after a video taken of the meeting circulated by the White House sparked controversy.
Critics said the video, showing a dozen Catholic bishops praying over Trump on Oct. 22 risked creating the appearance of an endorsement shortly before the midterm elections.
Archbishop Jeffrey S. Grob of Milwaukee, one of the attendees at the meeting, offered a public apology Oct. 25 and said the administration publicized the encounter “without the consent of the participants.”
“Please know that my intention was never to cause confusion, anger, or disappointment among the people entrusted to my care,” Archbishop Grob said.
The meeting, Archbishop Grob said, “was in no way an endorsement of the president, his policies, or his party.” He said he saw it as an opportunity to “discuss matters of importance to the Church and our people, including immigration enforcement, religious worker visas, and human dignity.”
‘We were told meeting was to be a private discussion’
“We were told the meeting was to be a private discussion, that several Catholic members of the cabinet might make an appearance, and that there could be an opportunity to pray privately with the president,” he said. “I took some time to weigh the decision and ultimately felt that, if I had the opportunity to offer my voice in a way that might improve the lives of God’s children, I ought to take it. I pray for our elected officials on a daily basis, so it seemed appropriate to do so in person.”
Archbishop Grob said after a 90-minute discussion with White House domestic policy staff and advisers, “we were eventually ushered into the Oval Office,” where the “president greeted us.”
“We were then directed to stand behind him and pray. After which several photos were taken and we were ushered out. Unbeknownst to the group of bishops a video was also taken,” he said. “But permission for the public distribution or posting of either the video or photos was not given by the bishops.”
After the video was circulated by the White House, Archbishop Grob said he started getting messages “of serious concern over the possibility that I had inadvertently participated in a political event less than two weeks before a national election.”
He said, “I also heard from some who felt wounded because of the ways they or their family had been harmed by the president’s policies.”
Catholic population has felt brunt of Trump deportation policies
The Catholic population in the U.S. has felt the brunt of the Trump administration’s mass deportation policies, a joint report from the National Association of Evangelicals, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops‘ Migration and Refugee Services, the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and World Relief estimated.
That report found more than 10 million Christians living in the U.S. would be vulnerable to deportation under Trump administration policies implemented in 2025, and 61% were Catholic. It found more than 1 in 6 Catholics are either vulnerable to deportation themselves or could see a family member deported, barring law or policy changes.
“I feel a heavy sadness, not only over the pain I caused, but also for the fact that something so sacred to a group of religious leaders, prayer to our Heavenly Father, would be manipulated in that way,” Archbishop Grob said. “We came in good faith to try to work for the betterment of our fellow human beings, to ease their suffering, to build up the common good, and to pray with a president, not to pose for a political photo opportunity to benefit the few.”
He added, “We should never have been put in that position by the White House. I did not go without reservations. I wish I had heeded them. Please know that I have heard these concerns, understand how I caused them, and I apologize for any damage my actions have done. We are, as ever, a pilgrim people. And that includes bishops.”
Bishop William M. Joensen of Des Moines, Iowa, also expressed regret in a statement, saying he was invited to the meeting to “discuss policies spanning a variety of issues. These issues included immigration and the exploitation of vulnerable poor persons; visas for international clergy, incentives for restorative reproductive medicine and advancement of a culture of life versus access to abortion-causing medicines; and support for private education with newly available federal tax credits.”
Bringing Gospel, Church’s teachings to bear on contemporary matters
“As a bishop, I am frequently called upon to engage people whose positions and actions are not aligned with the Church’s teachings, including local and higher-level elected officials,” he said. “I regarded this invitation as a distinct opportunity on the Memorial of St. John Paul II to bring the Gospel and the Church’s teachings to bear on contemporary matters that impact people in our Diocese and beyond. There was also a concluding opportunity to pray for and with our president, that God would guide his heart and impel him to lead in a way consistent with the dignity of his office.”
The meeting came shortly after a recent survey by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center found Trump’s approval rating among U.S. Catholics has dropped from 47% at the beginning of his second term to 30% in October 2026. Among Hispanic Catholics, it dropped from 31% to 18%, and among white Catholics from 59% to 39% over the same period.
It also came just weeks after many U.S. bishops strongly objected to a proposed and later canceled livestream of a military execution, and amid the ongoing war in Iran, which Pope Leo XIV has rebuked.
Some of the Trump administration’s immigration policies have also prompted criticism from the USCCB, notably ‘indiscriminate’ mass deportations or policies that separate families.
Administration’s record on life issues has met with mixed reception
The second Trump administration’s record on life issues has been met with mixed reception from Catholic leaders. They lauded a brief window of time where taxpayer funds were stripped from Planned Parenthood, but that funding has since resumed.
They also objected to the Trump administration’s attempts to expand in vitro fertilization, or IVF, and its approval of a second generic form of mifepristone, making a drug commonly used for first trimester abortion cheaper to acquire.
The Trump administration has also thus far declined to roll back the Biden administration’s eased restrictions on mifepristone, and has sought to block state challenges to it pending a safety review by the Food and Drug Administration that will not be concluded until after the midterms.
Bishop Joensen acknowledged that “there are many things tied to this present Administration that are blatantly at odds with our Catholic faith.”
“The advance communication we received indicated that we were to have a conversation and that key officials would be interested in hearing our perspective,” he said. “None of us bishops were unaware that our meeting was on the cusp of a national election. Yet in no way did any of us intend by our involvement to endorse any political party or any individual candidate.”
‘I pray I am more prudent and wise going forward’
He added, “That said, in retrospect, I would have done well to be more mindful of Jesus’ admonition: ‘Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves’ (Matthew 10:16). I wish I had been more shrewd and less simple, like those who exploited our meeting for partisan political purposes. I pray I am more prudent and wise going forward, even as I remain resolute in my openness to engaging and praying for political leaders at all levels.”
A spokesperson for retired Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City, Kansas, said in written comments provided to OSV News the three-hour meeting “was organized by the White House Faith Office as part of its regular outreach to faith leaders.”
“During the far-ranging conversation, Archbishop Naumann voiced his principal concerns including the need for stricter regulation of the chemical abortion pill as well as the ethical and moral concerns surrounding In Vitro Fertilization (IVF),” the statement said.
Topics raised at the meeting also included efforts to “protect children from the predatory pornographic industry that targets our youth,” and that industry’s ties to human trafficking, as well as “the protection of religious liberty, immigration as well as other issues,” the statement said.
“The White House staff promised to share the concerns and recommendations raised during the session with President Trump,” the statement said. “Following the meeting, President Trump met with the bishops in the Oval Office for a 15-minute greeting. During the meeting, the President expressed his gratitude to the bishops for prayers asking God to bless and guide the President, his staff and the nation.”
Retired archbishop at White House ‘on his own behalf’
In a written statement provided to OSV News, Kansas City Archbishop W. Shawn McKnight said, “Archbishop Emeritus Naumann’s attendance to the White House on October 22 was done on his own behalf. His actions and presence at that event were not representative of myself or the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas.”
After controversy over the video, Archbishop James R. Golka told the Denver Catholic, the archdiocesan news outlet, “Though I originally thought it would be a private meeting, I knew that it could be shared and that some might use it for political purposes.”
“But as I prayed about it, I thought that this is what Catholics do. We pray for people. No matter whether we agree or disagree on anything, we always pray for our country and leaders,” he said.
Archbishop Golka said that he understands “that many people saw the video, posted by the Administration twelve days before an election, as an endorsement.”
“That was never my intention,” he said. “The bishops of the United States teach that the Church cannot champion any candidate or party. I hold to that. However you vote, you ultimately belong to Jesus who loves you infinitely more than you can imagine.”
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has long held that it will not endorse or oppose specific candidates for public office, instead referring Catholics to its document “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship” as a guide for discerning their choices at the ballot box.
Chieko Noguchi, a spokesperson for the USCCB, told OSV News the organization had no role in the meeting.
The midterm elections are scheduled for Nov. 3.
Kate Scanlon is a national reporter for OSV News covering Washington. Follow her on X @kgscanlon.
