Rosario Murillo launches verbal attacks on priests and exiled opponents, calling them “poisonous snakes” while sidestepping U.S. criticism.
Newsroom (09/04/2026 Gaudium Press ) In a confrontational Good Friday address marked by fiery rhetoric and personal attacks, Nicaraguan Vice President Rosario Murillo lashed out against priests and opposition figures in exile, branding them “poisonous snakes.” Her remarks continued a pattern of hostility toward religious leaders and political dissidents, while carefully avoiding direct mention of U.S. criticism over the Ortega regime’s restrictions on public religious processions.
Murillo framed her verbal assault as a defense of faith and national unity, claiming priests and exiled opponents lacked “brotherhood” and were consumed by “hatred” and “envy.” Delivering her words with an air of moral authority, she declared: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. Who can say they are shepherds of infinite faith while speaking with hatred, with hearts of venomous serpents?”
A Veiled Message to the United States
Although Murillo refrained from addressing Washington’s condemnation of religious limitations, she appeared to reference U.S. immigration policy indirectly. Speaking of “brothers who are living through hard times,” she praised migrant communities and invoked the resilience of those “good people” in the U.S. who, she said, have “risen up at different times of war to fight for peace.”
A State Department official, quoted by 100% Noticias, responded by noting that Murillo and President Daniel Ortega have long used migration as “a weapon,” leveraging it for political messaging.
Attacks on “Sellouts” and “Servants of Empires”
Murillo’s speech escalated further as she accused her critics—particularly exiled priests—of serving foreign interests and pursuing personal gain. “How many came falsely claiming to be brothers, always looking for pennies,” she said, describing them as “sold out by mediocrity” and driven by “souls filled with hatred.”
She portrayed these opponents as instruments of imperial control, arguing they “pay homage to empires” and seek to “fragment a people” through deceit and division. Such inflammatory language has become characteristic of Murillo’s public statements, which blend religious imagery with nationalist defiance.
Religious Overtones Amid Political Tension
Despite her combative tone, Murillo occasionally shifted to a spiritual register, calling on Nicaraguans to “appease appetites that are not good” and to embrace unity “as Christian brothers, as compatriots.” This appeal to faith underscored an attempt to present her words as moral guidance, though analysts note that Murillo’s discourse frequently fuses Christian symbols with political propaganda.
Amid these religious invocations, Murillo reminisced about her privileged childhood, recalling her “patent leather shoes that squeaked,” a fleeting personal anecdote contrasting sharply with the vitriol directed at her opponents.
Media Strategy and Attacks on Clergy
Toward the end of her remarks, Murillo lauded the coverage of Holy Week celebrations, praising journalists for capturing “images of the Christian strength of the Nicaraguan people.” She emphasized the role of imagery in countering what she called distortions by “pastors” and critics abroad, noting that those opponents “speak with the souls of toads and snakes.”
Her comments appeared part of a deliberate media strategy to spotlight full churches and devout crowds—visuals meant to project national unity and faith—despite ongoing government restrictions on public religious processions.
A Speech of Faith and Fury
Rosario Murillo’s Good Friday speech ultimately blended piety with provocation, casting herself as a guardian of spirituality while denouncing priests and activists who have fled the country. Her words reflect not only the deepening rift between the Ortega-Murillo government and religious institutions but also the administration’s continued reliance on religious symbolism to mask political repression.
In invoking forgiveness while vilifying critics, Murillo once again demonstrated a defining paradox of Nicaragua’s political discourse—one that cloaks hostility in the language of faith and nationalism.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from 100% NOticias
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