Pope Leo XIV Appoints Immigrant Bishop: What This Means for Trump’s Immigration Policies
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El Salvador–born Former Undocumented Immigrant… Names ‘DEI’ Critic as Washington, D.C., Auxiliary Bishop
Pope Leo XIV has appointed an El Salvador–born priest who once entered the United States illegally to oversee the West Virginia diocese, a move likely to heighten tensions with President Donald Trump.
On the 1st (local time), The Washington Post reported that Leo XIV named Evelio Menjívar Ayala — who reportedly hid in the trunk of a car to enter the U.S. and later settled here — as bishop of the West Virginia diocese.
Bishop Ayala has been an outspoken critic of President Trump’s immigration policies and has urged Catholics to mount a vigorous response.
Leo XIV also appointed Father Robert Paksi III, a campus priest at Howard University in Washington, D.C., as an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Washington. Howard is a historically Black university, and Paksi has described Trump’s attacks on DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) as “un-American” and “anti-Christian.”
Observers say the appointments are likely to deepen clashes with President Trump. Leo XIV has opposed the administration’s anti-immigration measures and efforts to roll back DEI initiatives. He has also sharply criticized attempts by the Trump administration to frame a potential U.S.–Iran conflict in religious terms.
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