Pope Leo XIV’s brother spoke candidly in an interview about the reality of navigating political disagreements with his older brother, a Trump supporter.
Ahead of Friday’s one-year anniversary of Leo’s election as pope, John Prevost spoke to CNN’s Erin Burnett about his brothers Robert and Louis. Leo, born in 1955, is the youngest of the three, with John, the middle child, born in 1953 and Louis, the eldest, born in 1951.
Shortly after Leo’s election as pope in May 2025, the Daily Beast revealed that Louis was a vocal supporter of President Donald Trump, sharing numerous posts on social media to that effect. His page included a repost of a video of Rep. Nancy Pelosi from 1996 with the caption that labeled her a “drunk c--t.”
In interviews, he identified himself as a “MAGA conservative” and admitted that he “clashes with Leo on several issues,” including immigration.
Louis had shared multiple posts decrying “illegal aliens” and calls for Trump to “build the wall,” while Leo has called for “deep reflection” on the way the Trump administration has handled the issue of immigration, stressing the importance of treating people “with humanity and dignity.”
While Prevost initially defended his posts, telling Piers Morgan, “I wouldn’t have posted it if I didn’t kind of believe it,” he added that he would “probably tone it down” now that his brother was pope. He later made his social media accounts private.
Speaking to Burnett on Wednesday, John was honest about how he navigates political disagreements with his brother.
“You and your brothers, I understand, still talk together every week,“ Burnett said. “What I find here is that so many Americans can find hope in that; that regardless of the politics, that there can be brothers, and family, and love.”
She went on to ask John to speak about how he and Leo maintain a relationship with their brother despite disagreeing with him politically.
“We keep politics to a limit,” John replied.
“At certain times the topic may come up, but nothing he may say is gonna change my opinion, and nothing I may say is gonna change his opinion, so why discuss it?” he added.
“Just go on with what we’re doing, what’s new in our lives, where we’re going next, because there is that brother connection, and really, what brothers do not fight?”
“Families fight. But family is forever.”
President Donald Trump has repeatedly taken aim at Leo, incensed by the Chicago-born pontiff’s calls for peace in the Middle East.
In a lengthy social media rant in April, the president condemned Leo for thinking “it’s OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon,” while at the same time taking credit for his election as pope. Far from supporting Iran’s efforts, Leo has expressed his opposition to all forms of nuclear warfare.
In the same post, he praised Louis, writing, “I like his brother Louis much better than I like him, because Louis is all MAGA. He gets it, and Leo doesn’t!”
Trump even went so far as to invite Louis to the White House after news of his support for the president broke.
A photo shared on social media by Trump adviser Margo Martin showed Louis and his wife Deborah alongside Trump and Vice President JD Vance in the Oval Office in May, 2025.
“Great meeting between President Trump, Vice President Vance, and @Pontifex’s brother, Louis Prevost and his wife Deborah,” Martin wrote.
Earlier that day, Trump told reporters that he was looking forward to the meeting.
“I like the pope, and I like the pope’s brother,” he said. “Did you know that he lives in Florida? He’s got MAGA, he’s got Trump, and I look forward to getting him to the White House. I want to shake his hand. I want to give him a big hug.”
