President Donald Trump is facing a wave of backlash after posting an AI-generated image of himself as Jesus.
Trump, 79, took to his Truth Social page on Sunday, April 12, to share a photo of himself in the form of a sketch. The photo showed the president wearing a white and red robe with one hand on the head of a person who appears to be lying in hospital. A ball of light hovered above Trump’s other hand, which seemed to have the power to heal someone.
The background of the image contains patriotic images, including the Statue of Liberty, fireworks and the American flag. Trump is also surrounded by four people praying and looking at him, including a nurse and a man wearing military gear.
The post appeared to have been removed from Trump’s page on Monday, April 13.
Trump’s image of AI came shortly after he shared his intended message Pope Leo XIV.
“Pope Leo is AWESOME on Crime, and bad on Foreign Policy,” he wrote. “He talks about the ‘fear’ of the Trump Administration, but he does not talk about the FEAR of the Catholic Church, and all other Christian organizations, during the time of COVID when they arrest priests, teachers, and all other people, for holding Church services, even when they go outside, and are ten or even twenty meters apart.”
Trump said he likes Leo’s brother Louis Martín Prevost “a lot better” because Prevost is “all MAGA.” He added that he does not want a pope who “criticizes the President of the United States.”
“As everyone knows, he was a shocking miracle,” Trump wrote of Leo, 70. “He was not on any list to be Pope, and he was only put there by the Church because he was American, and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald J. Trump. If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican.”
In response to this message, Leo told reporters on Monday, “I’m not afraid of the Trump administration or talking too much about the Gospel message, which is what I believe I came to do.”
Keep scrolling to see how politicians and more reacted to the AI photo:
Riley Gaines
Conservative podcaster and former college swimmer Riley Gaines wrote about X, “Why? Seriously, I don’t understand why he posted this. Do you want an answer? Do you actually think this?”
Gaines continued, “Either way, two things are true. 1) a little humility would serve him well 2) God will not be laughed at.”
Senator Mark Kelly
Arizona Senator Mark Kelly shared Donald Trump’s comments about Pope Leo XIV and wrote, “As a Catholic, I find it disgusting that the President of the United States would publicly attack the Patron Saint of St. Peter. Donald Trump is on fire.”
Marjorie Taylor Greene
Marjorie Taylor Greenea former representative from Georgia and a supporter of Donald Trump, wrote on X, “On Orthodox Easter, President Trump attacked the Pope because the Pope strongly opposed Trump’s war on Iran and then posted this picture of him as if he was taking the place of Jesus.”
Greene continued, “This comes after his nasty post about Easter last week and threatening to kill all civilization. I absolutely condemn this and pray against it!!!
President Donald Trump is targeting political podcasters like Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens after they criticized him during the conflict in Iran. “I know why Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly, Candace Owens, and Alex Jones have all been fighting me for years, mostly because they think it’s cool. […]
Piers Morgan
“This has gone down well with many Trump cheerleaders,” the British broadcaster wrote Piers Morgan while sharing an AI photo repost. “It seems he’s intent on pissing everyone off, for reasons I don’t understand given his current approval numbers.”
Maria Shriver
In response to Donald Trump’s post about Pope Leo XIV, the former first lady of California Maria Shriver wrote, “The President of the United States attacking the Pope.
Sunny Hostin
Sunny Hostin and his followers Watching discussed the AI image during Monday’s episode. Hostin argued that the administration should invoke the 25th amendment, which ensures that the United States will always have an active president and vice president.
