What's going on with Donald Trump and Pope Leo? A timeline

The contentious back-and-forth betweenPresident Donald Trump and Pope Leo XIVcontinued over the weekend, with the president lashing out at the pope's criticisms of the war in Iran.

The president also appeared to take issue with arecent closed-door meetingbetween the Chicago native and a figure close to former President Barack Obama.

Here's a breakdown of what's going on.

How did the situation withDonald Trumpand Pope Leo start?

The recent friction began Tuesday, April 7, when Trump threatened to wipe out "a whole civilization" in Iran if the nation's capital didn't make a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

The threat proved controversial among many, including the pope, who labeled the comment "truly unacceptable."

"I would invite citizens of all the countries involved to contact the authorities, political leaders, congressman, to ask them to work for peace and to reject war always," the pope said to the press later that day.

Following the two-week ceasefire deal announced the next day, Pope Leo asked the world to join him in "this moment of delicate diplomacywith prayer."

"I welcome with satisfaction − and as a sign of living hope − the announcement of an immediate two-week truce," the pope wrote on X. "Only by returning to negotiations can the war come to an end."

During a prayer service at St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican Saturday, April 11, the pope called out the "delusion of omnipotencethat surrounds us and is becoming increasingly unpredictable and aggressive."

"Enough of the idolatry of self and money!" the pope said. "Enough of the display of power! Enough of war! True strength is shown in serving life."

See JD Vance in Pakistan for Iran peace talks

What did Donald Trump write about Pope Leo on Truth Social?

The president took to social media Sunday to call the pope "WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy."

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In a lengthy Truth Social post dedicated to the pope, Trump praised the religious figure's brother Louis for being "all MAGA," criticized the Catholic Church's actions during the COVID-19 pandemic and condemned the pope's criticisms of the United State's foreign policy.

Trump also claimed responsibility for the pope's election, saying, "If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican."

"He wasn’t on any list to be Pope, and was only put there by the Church because he was an American, and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald J. Trump," the president wrote.

Trump targets Pope Leo's meeting with Obama adviser

Trump also appeared to take issue with a recent closed-door meeting between the pope and Democratic strategist David Axelrod.

Axelrod served as a senior adviser to former President Barack Obama, stoking speculation among many about a potential meeting between the pontiff and 44th president.

In his Truth Social post, Trump wrote, "Unfortunately, Leo’s Weak on Crime, Weak on Nuclear Weapons, does not sit well with me, nor does the fact that he meets with Obama Sympathizers like David Axelrod."

Trump labeled Axelrod "a LOSER from the Left, who is one of those who wanted churchgoers and clerics to be arrested," and continued to say the pope should "focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician."

Has Pope Leo responded to Trump's Truth Social post?

The popeaddressed Trump's commentsSunday as he spoke to reporters on a flight from Rome to Algeria.

"I have no fear of the Trump administration, or speaking out loudly of the message of the Gospel, which is what I believe I am here to do," he said. "I do not look at my role as being political, a politician. I don’t want to get into a debate with him. I don’t think that the message of the Gospel is meant to be abused in the way that some people are doing."

When asked for his thoughts on the president's Truth Social comments, the pontiff said: "It’s ironic – the name of the site itself. Say no more."

CONTRIBUTING:Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy,Terry CollinsandPhillip M. Bailey, USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Pope Leo responds to Trump's Truth Social post. What did it say?

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What's going on with Donald Trump and Pope Leo? A timeline

The contentious back-and-forth betweenPresident Donald Trump and Pope Leo XIVcontinued over the weekend, with the president lashing out...

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Failure of US-Iran talks is a blow to hopes of finding an off-ramp to crisis

We watched the sun go down in Islamabad and then come up again as these marathon talks went on. To endwithout a dealmarks a fundamental blow to nascent hopes of finding an off-ramp to this crisis.

These were meetings of huge consequence –– the highest-level talks between US and Iranian officials since the formation of the Islamic Republic in 1979 –– and it’s hard to underestimate just how complex the discussions have been.

Beyond what was said in the room, technical papers were exchanged and reviewed repeatedly. But the two sides were simply too far apart, not just in substance, but in style and temperament. The respective delegations went into these talks with vastly different approaches: US Vice PresidentJD Vanceappeared to be after a relatively quick solution after the implementation of a two-week ceasefire, but Tehran typically moves much slower,negotiating over the long term.

With Vance saying America has put forward its “best and final” offer, the ball now seems to sit firmly in the Iranian court. And if there are going to be more talks, Iran will have to change its position somehow.

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Iran believes the talksfailed because of “excessive” US demands, and it’s clear from both sides that nuclear enrichment is a key sticking point. Tehran has insisted for years it would not build a nuclear weapon and that it only wished to pursue a nuclear power program, but its actions ramping up the level of enrichment of uranium in recent years caused great concern in the West — and were the catalyst for last year’s 12-day conflict with Israel. Iran still appears unwilling to give up on enrichment. The White House wants a cast-iron commitment that Iran won’t build a nuclear weapon.

As the talks played out, we saw various statements released through Iranian media that appeared aimed at a domestic audience, some explaining why Tehran had even entered diplomatic talks at all with its longtime enemy. Its foreign ministry went so far as to spell out that diplomacy was “the continuation of the sacred jihad of the defenders of the Iranian land.”

The two-week ceasefire itself was struck against the backdrop of a maximalist threat from US President Donald Trump to annihilate a civilization and blow up Iran’s power plants and key infrastructure. Whether that threat comes into play again is now a key question.

Two other fundamental questions hang in the air: How will Iran respond to the US walking away? And how much longer will the global economy be stuck in limbo?

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Failure of US-Iran talks is a blow to hopes of finding an off-ramp to crisis

We watched the sun go down in Islamabad and then come up again as these marathon talks went on. To endwithout a dealmarks a fundamental...

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Where to watch Masters today: Time, TV and stream as Rory McIlroy eyes repeat

Rory McIlroyis 18 holes away from making history atthe 90th Masters, but he'll have to outlast Cameron Young in order to do so.

The Northern Irishman and American are co-leads through the first three rounds at Augusta National after Young's eight-stroke comeback to tie McIlroy atop the leaderboard on Saturday. McIlroy, on the other hand, entered Saturday 12-under with a cushiony six-shot lead but got off to a slow start with a bogey on the first hole.

Just when it looked like McIlroy had righted the ship and was going to run away with it after all, things spiraled with his rare double-bogey on No. 11 and some more mishaps, leaving an opening for Young to overtake him for the lead.

McIlroy tied things back up to finish a rocky third round at 11-under par. He's still in a good position to become the first golfer to win back-to-back green jackets since Tiger Woods in 2001 and 2002, but he's going to have to sweat it out a lot more than it looked like he would have to when he cruised through the first two rounds.

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Here's how to watch the final round of the 2026 Masters.

Masters champions: Every winner at Augusta since 2000

Where to watch the Masters on Sunday

The final round of the Masters will air on CBS with coverage starting at 2 p.m. ET. Coverage will end at approximately 7 p.m. ET.

Anyone looking to stream Masters content can find coverage onParamount+, theESPNapp, Masters.com or Amazon Prime Video.

Full streaming schedule for Round 4 of the Masters

*All times Eastern

• On the Range: 10 a.m.-12 p.m. (Masters.com/Masters app, Paramount+, ESPN app)

• Featured Groups: 10:15 a.m.-7 p.m. (Masters.com/Masters app, Paramount+, ESPN app, Amazon Prime Video)

• Featured Holes (4, 5 and 6): 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. (Masters.com/Masters app, ESPN app)

• Featured Holes (Amen Corner, 11, 12 and 13): 11:45 a.m.-6 p.m. (Masters.com/Masters app, Paramount+, ESPN app, Amazon Prime Video)

• Featured Holes (15 and 16): 12:30-6:30 p.m. (Masters.com/Masters app, Paramount+, ESPN app, Amazon Prime Video)

• Round 4 Early Coverage: 12-2 p.m. (Paramount+, Masters.com/Masters app)

• Round 4 CBS Telecast: 2-7 p.m. (Paramount+, Masters.com/Masters app)

Azaleas are blooming, pine trees are standing tall and the dogwoods are flowering. The 90th Masters Tournament is set to begin at the Augusta National Golf Club. See one image from each hole of the fabled course. Tiger Woods watches his approach shot on the first hole, named Tea Olive, during the third round of the 2022 Masters at Augusta National Golf Club. The par-4, 445-yard hole has a slight dogleg right that plays uphill.

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One photo from every hole at iconic Augusta National, home of Masters

Azaleas are blooming, pine trees are standing tall and the dogwoods are flowering. The90th Masters Tournamentis set to begin at the Augusta National Golf Club. See one image from each hole of the fabled course. Tiger Woods watches his approach shot on the first hole, named Tea Olive, during the third round of the 2022 Masters at Augusta National Golf Club. The par-4, 445-yard hole has a slight dogleg right that plays uphill.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Masters 2026 TV channel, stream and how to watch Augusta action Sunday

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Where to watch Masters today: Time, TV and stream as Rory McIlroy eyes repeat

Rory McIlroyis 18 holes away from making history atthe 90th Masters, but he'll have to outlast Cameron Young in order to do so. ...

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Iran war diverts US military and attention from Asia ahead of Trump's summit with China's leader

WASHINGTON (AP) — In 2011, President Barack Obama declared it was time for America to leave behind the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and “pivot” to Asia to counter the rise of China. Fifteen years later, the U.S. finds itself stillat war in the Middle Eastand has pulled military assets from the Asia-Pacific as it aims to eliminate the threat posed by Iran's nuclear and missile programs.

Iran US Asia

The demands of the Iran war also caused President Donald Trump todelay by several weekshis highly anticipated trip to China, deepening worries that the U.S. is once again getting distracted at the cost of its strategic interests in Asia, where Beijing seeks to unseat the U.S. as the regional leader.

Those skeptical of the U.S. involvement in the Middle East say the war is preventing Trump from adequately preparing for his summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping next month, when economic interests are on the line, and they warn that a failure to focus on Asia and maintain strong deterrence could lead to greater instability, if China should believe the time is ripe toseize the self-governed island of Taiwan.

“This is precisely the wrong time for the United States to turn away and be sucked into another intractable Middle East conflict,” said Danny Russel, a distinguished fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute. “Rebalancing to Asia is highly relevant to America’s national interests, but it has been undercut by many bad decisions.”

Others defend the president's approach, arguing that the forceful steps he is taking elsewhere, including inVenezuelaand Iran, serve to counter China globally.

“Beijing is the chief sponsor for the adversaries that President Trump is dealing with sequentially, and it’s wise to do this sequentially,” Matt Pottinger, who served as a deputy national security adviser in the first Trump administration, said in a recent podcast.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte also said conflicts may not be confined to a single theater, suggesting that China could call upon its “junior partners” elsewhere to divert U.S. attention if it should move against Taiwan.

“Most likely it will not be limited, something in the Indo-Pacific to the Indo-Pacific,” Rutte said, speaking Thursday at the Ronald Reagan Institute in Washington. “It will be a multi-theater issue.”

Repercussions in Asia of the Iran war

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, recently led a bipartisan group of senators toTaiwan,Japan and South Korea, where they heard concerns about the impact of the war on energy costs and about the departure of U.S. military assets, including missile defense systems from South Korea and a rapid-response Marine unit from Japan.

She sought to reassure them of the U.S. commitment to deterring conflicts in Asia and shoring up regional stability.

“Failure is not an option,” Shaheen told The Associated Press after returning from Asia. “We know China has already said they intend to take Taiwan by force if they need to, and they’re on an expedited time schedule. And we also know that what happened in Europe, in the war in Ukraine, in the Middle East is affecting those calculations.”

Kurt Campbell, who served as deputy secretary of state in the Biden administration, said he’s worried that the military capabilities that the U.S. had patiently accumulated in the Indo-Pacific region might not return in full even after the Iran war ends.

The longer the conflict goes on, the more it will pull resources and focus away from Asia, said Zack Cooper, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute who studies the U.S. strategy in Asia. He added that future arms sales to the region also will be negatively affected.

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“The United States has expended substantial numbers of munitions in the Middle East and will have to keep an increased force presence there, some of which has been redirected from Asia,” Cooper said. “Meanwhile, Xi Jinping’s wisdom in preparing a ‘war time’ economy by stockpiling and adding alternate energy sources has shown itself to be beneficial.”

Shaheen said the U.S. defense industry will struggle to meet the demand to replenish the weapons stockpile. “We’re working on a number of strategies to improve that, but at this point, timelines for weapons delivery are slipping,” she said.

The senator from New Hampshire said she's encouraged that Taiwan, Japan and South Korea are stepping up their own defense.

After 15 years and 3 presidents, pivot to Asia remains elusive

Obama's strategic rebalance to Asia reflected his understanding that the U.S. must be a player in the Pacific to harness the region’s growth and ensure continued U.S. leadership in the face of China's rising influence.

“After a decade in which we fought two wars that cost us dearly, in blood and treasure, the United States is turning our attention to the vast potential of the Asia-Pacific region,” Obama said in a speech to the Australian Parliament. “So make no mistake, the tide of war is receding, and America is looking ahead to the future that we must build.”

But the strategy was set back when a proposed trade agreement known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership with key U.S. regional partners failed to get through the U.S. Senate. After Trump first took office in 2017, he withdrew the U.S. from the partnership and launched a tariff war with China.

His Democratic successor, Joe Biden, kept Trump's tariffs on China and tightened export controls on advanced technology, while strengthening regional alliances to counter China.

Middle East again grabs US attention

By the time Trump rolled out his national security strategy in late 2025, the U.S. strategy in Asia had been narrowed to military deterrence in the Taiwan Strait and the First Island Chain, a string of U.S.-aligned islands off China's coast that restrict its access to the Western Pacific.

The national security document says it's in the economic interest of the U.S. to secure access to advanced chips, which are sourced primarily from Taiwan and are needed to power everything from computers to missiles, and to protect shipping lanes in the South China Sea.

“Hence deterring a conflict over Taiwan, ideally by preserving military overmatch, is a priority,” the document says. “We will build a military capable of denying aggression anywhere in the First Island Chain.”

The Middle East, it says, should be getting less attention: “As this administration rescinds or eases restrictive energy policies and American energy production ramps up, America’s historic reason for focusing on the Middle East will recede."

Then came the Iran war.

AP writer Stephen Groves contributed to this report.

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Iran war diverts US military and attention from Asia ahead of Trump's summit with China's leader

WASHINGTON (AP) — In 2011, President Barack Obama declared it was time for America to leave behind the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and...

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