Vance says it was "pretty crazy" that he met Pope Francis in his last 24 hours
Vice President JD Vance said Wednesday that it was "pretty crazy" that he was among the last officials to meet with Pope Francis before his death earlier this week.
"When I saw him, I didn't know that he had less than 24 hours still on this earth," Vance told reporters in Agra, India. "I think it was a great blessing."
The vice president is on a four-day trip in India with his wife Usha, the first Hindu American second lady, whose parents emigrated to the U.S. from India. Vance's visit with his family comes after they traveled to Italy last week to participate in Holy Week events. Vance noted that plans remain in flux about whether he will attend the pope's funeral in the coming days.
The vice president outlined his brief visit with Francis on Easter Sunday, saying he knew the pope was "very ill," but he "didn't realize how sick he was."
"The thing that I will always remember Pope Francis for is that he was a great pastor," Vance said. "People on the margins, poor people, people suffering from diseases, they saw in Pope Francis an advocate and I think, a true expression of Christian love."
Vance added that the pontiff "affected a lot of lives," saying that he tries to remember "that I was lucky that I got to shake his hand and tell him that I pray for him every day, because I did and I do."
Vance and Francis' meeting came after the two men had sharp disagreements on immigration as the pontiff had long condemned the Trump administration's approach. Vance, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, told reporters Wednesday that he's aware of the disagreements the pope had with some of the Trump administration's policies, while noting that he would not "soil the man's legacy by talking about politics."
On the selection of the next pope, the vice president said he would "say a prayer for wisdom" for the Cardinals, saying that "I want them to pick somebody who will be good for the world's Catholics."
"But I'll let them make that decision, and obviously they're entitled to do so," he added.
The vice president's trip to India comes amid President Trump's recent actions on tariffs. Vance arrived in India on Monday and met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after which the leaders touted progress on trade talks.
The vice president told reporters Wednesday that "we're making progress across the board," though he said of the trade discussions more broadly that it's "a little bit too early to prejudge, to say what any of these deals is going to look like."
