Two US bishops apologise after White House publicised their prayer with Trump
Milwaukee Archbishop Jeffrey Grob and Des Moines Bishop William Joensen expressed regret after the White House released photos and video of bishops praying with President Trump on 22 October. Grob said the participants had not consented to publication.
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The story, neutrally told
Left · 2Milwaukee Archbishop Jeffrey Grob issued a statement titled "A Public Apology" on Sunday 25 October, expressing regret over a White House meeting with President Donald Trump that he and 11 other bishops attended on Thursday 22 October. The IndependentLC “Milwaukee Archbishop Jeffrey Grob, in a statement titled “A Public Apology,” said Sunday” Read at The Independent ↗ Raw StoryL “the October 22 meeting I and 11 other bishops attended at the White House” Read at Raw Story ↗ Left · 2Grob said the administration publicised the meeting soon afterwards without the participants' consent, and that the bishops had not known a video was being recorded. Raw StoryL “Unbeknownst to the group of bishops, a video was also taken. But permission for the public distribution or posting of either the video or photos was not given by the bishops.” Read at Raw Story ↗ The IndependentLC “without consent of the participants, and less than two weeks away from the midterm elections” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1Grob described the visit: Trump greeted the bishops, sat at his desk and gave them commemorative tokens, then they were directed to stand behind him and pray, after which photos were taken and they were ushered out. Raw StoryL “The president greeted us, took a seat at his desk and presented us with commemorative tokens,” Read at Raw Story ↗
Left · 1According to Grob and Bishop William Joensen of Des Moines, Iowa, the invitation came in September and offered discussion of immigration enforcement, religious worker visas, abortion and federal tax credits for private education. The IndependentLC “According to Joensen and Grob, the White House invitation to the bishops was extended in September.” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1Grob said the bishops were told the meeting would be a private discussion with a possible chance to pray privately with the president, and that it "was in no way an endorsement of the president, his policies, or his party." The IndependentLC ““The meeting was in no way an endorsement of the president, his policies, or his party,” wrote Grob.” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 2Grob said they felt "a heavy sadness" that prayer had been "manipulated", said they had received distraught messages including from people who felt harmed by the president's policies, and wrote: "I did not go without reservations. I wish I had heeded them." The IndependentLC ““I feel a heavy sadness, not only over the pain I caused, but also for the fact that something so sacred to a group of religious leaders, prayer to our Heavenly Father, would be manipulated in that way,"” Read at The Independent ↗ Raw StoryL “I did not go without reservations. I wish I had heeded them.” Read at Raw Story ↗
Left · 1Joensen also issued a statement saying he wished he had "been more shrewd and less simple, like those who exploited our meeting for partisan political purpose", while remaining open to praying for political leaders. The IndependentLC ““I wish I had been more shrewd and less simple, like those who exploited our meeting for partisan political purpose,” he wrote.” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1The video had been posted on X by the "Trump War Room" account; Raw Story reports that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops described this as an attempt to "hijack the message" of the organisation. Raw StoryL “the "Trump War Room" account on X posted a video of the prayer meeting, which the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops described as an attempt to "attempt to hijack the message" of the organization” Read at Raw Story ↗ Left · 1The White House press office declined to say whether it had the bishops' consent; spokeswoman Taylor Rogers instead said there "has never been a greater president for Catholic Americans than President Trump." The IndependentLC “The White House press office declined to answer when asked whether it had or had not received the bishop's consent for releasing the photos and video.”““There has never been a greater president for Catholic Americans than President Trump, and his strong record proves it."” Read at The Independent ↗
Left · 1The Independent notes that US Conference of Catholic Bishops members hold diverse views on Trump: Bishop Robert Barron joined Trump's Religious Liberty Commission, while other bishops have strongly denounced aspects of Trump's immigration enforcement as contrary to Catholic teaching. The IndependentLC “Members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops collectively have diverse views on Trump and his administration's policies.” Read at The Independent ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left2 outlets
- Framing
- Both left-leaning outlets present the bishops as having been used by the White House for a political photo opportunity, relying chiefly on Grob's public letter. Raw Story frames it as a 'rare public rebuke'; the Independent (an AP-style report by David Crary) leads with the apology.
- Emphasis
- Lack of consent, the timing under two weeks before the midterm elections, Grob's 'heavy sadness' and the White House's non-answer on consent.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Neither carries a detailed account from the White House beyond a spokeswoman's general statement; Raw Story omits the White House response and Joensen's statement.
- Charged language
- “rare public rebuke”“manipulated”“exploited our meeting for partisan political purpose”
- For example
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“sparked a rare public rebuke from one of the participating religious leaders” — Raw Story
“making clear he felt the White House had taken advantage of the bishops” — The Independent
Centre1 outlet
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right0 outlets
No right outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
What every side reports
- Twelve bishops met at the White House on Thursday 22 October 2026.
- The White House publicised photos and video of the bishops praying with Trump.
- Archbishop Jeffrey Grob said consent for publication was not given and apologised.
Where accounts differ
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Whether the bishops consented to publication
- Left
- Grob says permission was not given; the White House declined to say whether it had consent.
Donald Trump person
Trump's White House did not answer on consent; spokeswoman Taylor Rogers pointed to his record with Catholic Americans.
““There has never been a greater president for Catholic Americans than President Trump, and his strong record proves it."” — The Independent
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops organisation
Per Raw Story, the Conference described the video's release as an attempt to hijack the organisation's message.
“which the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops described as an attempt to "attempt to hijack the message" of the organization” — Raw Story
Catholic bishops topic
Grob and Joensen say they came in good faith and were exploited; the Independent notes bishops hold varied views on Trump.
“Members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops collectively have diverse views on Trump and his administration's policies.” — The Independent
Left2 articles
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Trump White House prayer meeting sparks public rebuke from archbishop: 'A heavy sadness'
Critical Presents Grob's letter as a rebuke of the Trump White House for publicising a prayer without consent.
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Catholic bishops apologize over photo of them praying with Trump
Mixed Reports the bishops' apologies and adds the White House non-answer and context on divided bishops' views, in a mostly straight news tone.
Centre1 article
Right0 articles
No coverage yet.
- 25 Oct 19:48 First Raw StoryL Trump White House prayer meeting sparks public rebuke from archbishop: 'A heavy sadness'
- 26 Oct 06:21 +10h 33m The IndependentLC Catholic bishops apologize over photo of them praying with Trump
- 26 Oct 07:56 +12h 8m NewsweekN Catholic Bishops Say White House Exploited Prayer With Trump
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.
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