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Catholic bishops apologize, say White House used Trump prayer politically

Archbishop Jeffrey Grob of Milwaukee and another Catholic bishop have apologized and expressed regret over a White House meeting in which they prayed with President Donald Trump.^{⁠[4, 5, 8 +1]} The bishops say they believed the meeting was private and that the White House did not ask permission before posting photos and video of the prayer, which was shared by the Trump War Room account on X.^{⁠[3, 14, 16]} Grob said the White House "manipulated" the faith leaders into a "political photo opportunity," and one bishop wrote that he wished he had been "more shrewd and less simple, like those who exploited our meeting."^{⁠[4, 10]}

The bishops said the meeting was in no way an endorsement of the president, his policies, or his party.^⁠[6] The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops described the video as an attempt to "hijack the message" of the organization.^⁠[3] The Guardian reported the bishops accused the White House of turning the prayer into a campaign photo opportunity before next week's US elections.^⁠[5]

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Read first Bishops lament White House meeting that produced photo with Trump · CBS News