The White House on Saturday posted an AI-generated image of U.S. President Donald Trump depicted as the leader of the Catholic Church, a couple of days after he jokingly said “I’d like to be pope.”
The picture, which was first posted by Trump on his social media network Truth Social and later shared by the White House on X, depicts Trump in papal attire with a large crucifix hanging around his neck, while sitting on the coronation chair and pointing with his index finger.
The Catholic Church is currently searching for a new spiritual leader after the death of Pope Francis earlier this month, with cardinals set to enter the Sistine Chapel on May 7 to begin the process of electing the next pontiff. …CONTINUE READING
Trump attended the funeral of Pope Francis in Rome last week, in what was his first foreign trip during his second term as U.S. president.
Francis has often been painted as Trump’s ultimate foil — a man with immense power who adopted the posture of a humble servant, lived simply and embraced the most marginalized members of society. But alt right groups are attempting a takeover of the conclave charged with deciding on the next pope.
When asked who should succeed Francis, Trump told a reporter on Tuesday: “I have no preference,” after joking that “I’d like to be pope.” Trump said he himself would be his “number one choice.” He then added: “I must say, we have a cardinal that happens to be out of a place called New York who’s very good.”
The AI-generated picture has been met with some amusement as well as criticism, with a large swath of social media users seeing it as a clear insult to the just-deceased pontiff.
“This is an image that offends believers, insults institutions and shows that the leader of the right-wing world enjoys playing the clown,” former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi wrote on X. “Meanwhile, the American economy risks recession and the dollar is losing value. Sovereignists do damage, everywhere.”
The official X account for the New York State Catholic Conference criticized the picture in a post on X. “There is nothing clever or funny about this image, Mr. President. We just buried our beloved Pope Francis and the cardinals are about to enter a solemn conclave to elect a new successor of St. Peter. Do not mock us,” the post said.
“I love Trump but find his Pope meme disrespectful and insulting,” one user wrote in a reaction on X. “God will not be mocked. Not a wise decision.”
Vice President JD Vance defended Trump after he posted the AI image, dismissing the post as a joke. “As a general rule, I’m fine with people telling jokes and not fine with people starting stupid wars that kill thousands of my countrymen,” Vance wrote in a post on X on Saturday.
The White House rejected any suggestion that the Republican president was making fun of the papacy. “President Trump flew to Italy to pay his respects to Pope Francis and attend his funeral, and he has been a staunch champion for Catholics and religious liberty,” said press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
