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By Khaleda Rahman
National Correspondent
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Pope Francis has sparked the fury of MAGA Republicans after saying that it was "madness" for the U.S. to close the border to migrants.
"Migration is something that makes a country grow," Francis told CBS Evening News anchor Norah O'Donnell during an interview with 60 Minutes via a Spanish translator. He also criticized efforts by the state of Texas to shut down a Catholic charity that provides humanitarian assistance to undocumented migrants.
"That is madness. Sheer madness," he said. "To close the border and leave them there, that is madness."
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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office sued Annunciation House in February, accusing the nonprofit of "facilitating illegal entry to the United States, alien harboring, human smuggling, and operating a stash house." A judge ruled against Paxton in March, but his office filed an another complaint against Annunciation House this month. Paxton's office has been contacted for comment via email.
President Joe Biden had backed a bipartisan border bill that sought to tamp down the number of illegal crossings, which collapsed due to opposition from Donald Trump. Biden said last month that his administration was exploring whether he has the authority to shut down the border without authorization from Congress.
Francis said the solution was for the U.S. to welcome migration.
"The migrant has to be received," he said. "Thereafter, you see how you are going to deal with him. Maybe you have to send him back, I don't know, but each case ought to be considered humanely."
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Francis' comments sparked outrage from supporters of former president Trump, who has promised to launch the largest domestic deportation operation in U.S. history if he wins back the White House in November.
Rogan O'Handley, a conservative commentator who posts on social media with the handle @DC_Draino, blasted Francis as a "hypocrite."
"If Pope Francis is so concerned about other countries not wanting illegal aliens, then why doesn't he start taking millions of illegal aliens into the Vatican?" O'Handley wrote on X, formerly Twitter. "Oh right, he's a hypocrite."
Jack Posobiec, a far-right activist, wrote on X: "Pope Francis is wrong. Illegal are clearly not migrants, and no country has a moral duty to receive anyone from anywhere/ And why do they only talk about this for Western countries?"
Tim Young, a conservative comedian, wrote: "The Pope says it's wrong for us to close our southern border... Meanwhile, he's protected by the Swiss guard, screening while entering the Vatican and the walls that still stand around it."
Another Trump supporter wrote: "Pope Francis denounces attempts to close the American border and calls it madness to do so.
"Why does he have a massive wall around Vatican City then? He's encouraging infiltration of America and I'd bet my life he has a massive hand in it all. He's a hypocrite."
And another urged Francis to tear down the walls around the Vatican.
"Open all your windows. Unlock all the doors. Let everyone in, regardless of their intent," they wrote. "That's what you're asking us to do. You asking us to give up our freedoms, our security and our safety."
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