The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops sued the Trump administration on Tuesday, asking a judge to declare the suspension of aid to refugees unlawful and demand the White House pay millions it owes the Church for refugee care.
The suit by the USCCB, which represents the leadership of the Catholic Church in the United States, comes as the Trump administration is in a standoff with faith-based groups. Such groups provide much of the domestic and foreign aid the administration has halted or seeks to — particularly around the care of refugees and migrants.
The Church’s longtime partnership with the U.S. government “has helped nearly a million individuals find safety and build their lives in the United States,” USCCB spokeswoman Chieko Noguchi wrote to The Washington Post on Tuesday night, in reference to its work with refugee resettlement. “We are urging the government to uphold its legal and moral obligations to refugees and to restore the necessary funding to ensure that faith-based and community organizations can continue this vital work that reflects our nation’s values of compassion, justice and hospitality.”
Last month, Vice President JD Vance criticized the U.S. Catholic Church’s efforts to help immigrants and refugees, suggesting the Church is motivated by money, and alleged without evidence that it works with millions of “illegal immigrants.” Elon Musk, a top adviser to Trump, shared a tweet earlier this month calling “illegal” multiple Lutheran organizations that work in the United States to provide health care to homeless people, run food pantries, and help migrants and refugees.
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia, names as defendants the State Department, the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration and the Department of Health and Human Services. It says the bishops have partnered with the U.S. government for nearly 50 years, and that the bureau has committed to provide $65 million to the USCCB “for the immediate physical needs and integration of refugees into their new communities.”
What is the federal government doing subsidizing religion? No 1st Amendment for you!
