Marco Rubio to Meet Pope Leo XIV Alone After JD Vance Gets Frozen Out in Major Diplomatic Snub

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican on Thursday in a one-on-one encounter that pointedly excludes Vice President JD Vance, marking a sharp break from the last time both men stood before the first American pope nearly a year ago.

A Vatican source confirmed to Reuters that Rubio is expected to sit down with Leo and Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin on 7 May. The meeting comes almost exactly a year after Rubio and Vance together attended Leo's inaugural Mass in St Peter's Square on 19 May 2025 and held a private audience with the pontiff the following day.

A Year Later, Only One Gets the Call

This time, there is no invitation for Vance. The vice president's office and the State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. But behind the scenes, the omission has not gone unnoticed. Allies of Vance are privately accusing the Vatican of coordinating with American journalists to damage his 2028 presidential prospects, according to The Daily Beast.

The tension between Vance and the Holy See runs deeper than one missed meeting. At a Turning Point USA event in Georgia last month, Vance warned Leo to 'be careful when he talks about matters of theology' after the pope condemned the US-led military action in Iran.

The US Conference of Catholic Bishops responded with a rare public rebuke, saying the pontiff was 'exercising his ministry as the Vicar of Christ,' not merely offering opinions.

Rubio's Star Rises as Vance's Dims

Vance later softened his tone, praising Leo for 'preaching the gospel, as he should' and asking for prayers. But the damage appears to have stuck. Before his election, Pope Leo, born Robert Francis Prevost in Chicago, had reposted articles criticising Vance's stance on immigration, including one headlined 'JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn't ask us to rank our love for others.'

Meanwhile, Rubio has emerged as one of President Donald Trump's most praised officials. At his State of the Union address in February, Trump told Congress that Rubio would 'go down as the best ever.' He later joked about firing Rubio after the Munich Security Conference for being too likeable, saying 'if you do any better, you're out of here.' Rubio's Munich speech earned a standing ovation, a sharp contrast to the frosty reception Vance received at the same conference a year earlier.

The 2028 Shadow Primary

Trump has named both Vance and Rubio as possible successors. But the gap is closing fast. At the Conservative Political Action Conference's 2028 straw poll in March, Rubio jumped from 3% to 35% support in one year, while Vance dropped from 61% to 53%.

On prediction markets, the two are now tied at 20% for the presidency.

CNN data analyst Harry Enten has called Vance 'the least popular vice president at this point in their vice presidency,' with a net approval rating of minus 18 points.

More Than a Courtesy Visit

Rubio's trip is also designed to repair ties between Washington and the Vatican after Trump called Leo 'weak' and 'terrible for foreign policy' in a Truth Social post last month. The pope had declared Trump's threat to destroy Iran 'unacceptable' on 7 April and has so far declined the White House's invitation to visit.

For Vance, the Vatican's decision to welcome Rubio alone is more than a scheduling oversight. It is the latest sign that the Catholic convert who built his political brand around faith now finds himself on the wrong side of the most powerful Catholic leader in the world, just as the race to succeed Trump takes shape.