Trump Posting Apparent AI Photo of Himself as the Pope Takes Off Online

[bnew]

Trump posting apparent AI photo of himself as the pope takes off online

The president posted the photo Friday night with no caption and it has since sparked praise and backlash.

www.newsweek.com

Trump Posting Apparent AI Photo of Himself as the Pope Takes Off Online​

Today at null

By Anna Commander

Deputy News Editor

President Donald Trump posted a seemingly artificially enhanced photo of himself depicted as the pope on Truth Social Friday night and it has sparked dueling backlash and praise on social media.

Newsweek reached out to the Vatican via email Friday night for comment.

The Context​

Pope Francis' death on April 21 marked a time of mourning for millions of Catholics around the world. Francis died from complications related to a stroke, followed by a coma and irreversible cardiocirculatory collapse.

His funeral took place on Saturday in St. Peter's Square in front of heads of state, including the president and first lady Melania Trump, clergy and the general public. Francis' body was laid to rest in St. Mary Major, one of the four papal basilicas in Rome.

Francis' leadership in the Catholic Church sparked distinguishable change, mainly with his views on the LGBTQ+ community.

What To Know​

The president posted the picture at 10:29 p.m. Friday, without a caption or comment. The post immediately garnered positive and negative reaction online.

Comedian Terrance K. Williams posted on X, formerly Twitter, Friday night, "Pope Trump... Lol our President just posted this. He's trolling because he knows the media is going to flip out. Love it Actually I love the sound of King Trump, the first of his name."

Melanie D'Arrigo, executive director of the Campaign for New York Health and former Democratic congressional candidate, also posted to X on Friday night, saying, "The guy who broke all 10 commandments is posting pictures of himself cosplaying as the next Pope."

Trump was asked this week whom he'd like to see succeed Francis as the new pope. "I'd like to be pope," he quipped.

Continuing, he added while speaking to reporters on Wednesday: "That would be my number one choice. No, I don't know, I have no preference. ... I must say, we have a cardinal [Timothy Dolan, archbishop of New York since 2009] that happens to be out of a place called New York, who's very good.

"So, we'll see what happens."

Speculation has mounted over who could be the next pope, as betting odds and social media chatter have swirled. According to bookmakers and Vatican analysts, a handful of potential candidates have strong odds.

Marco Rubio, Trump's secretary of state and also his acting interim national security adviser, also quipped about being the next pope in an interview on Thursday with Fox News' Sean Hannity.

Rubio said in part, "You don't have to be a priest. Any—people don't know that. Any unmarried Catholic male can be pope, but I got married and I'm happily married, so I guess I'll miss out on that one."

Vice President JD Vance first joked about Rubio being pope, posting to X on Thursday, "I think he could take on a bit more. If only there was a job opening for a devout Catholic..."

President Donald Trump posted this seemingly AI-enhanced photo of himself late Friday night. (Photo from Donald Trump's Truth Social)

What People Are Saying​

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina posted to X on Tuesday: "I was excited to hear that President Trump is open to the idea of being the next Pope. This would truly be a dark horse candidate, but I would ask the papal conclave and Catholic faithful to keep an open mind about this possibility! The first Pope-U.S. President combination has many upsides. Watching for white smoke.... Trump MMXXVIII!"

The Republicans Against Trump X account on Friday: "Donald Trump just posted a photo of himself as the Pope. It's full-on lunacy at this point."

The MAGA Voice X account on Friday: "HOLY SH*T Donald Trump stuns the world by posting a picture of himself as the next Pope Donald Trump would be one of the BEST Popes to ever live "

Art Candee, Chicago-based artist and frequent Trump critic, posted to X on Friday: "Donald Trump is now posting AI images cosplaying as the Pope. Bro isn't right in the head."

Ruth Ben-Ghiat, historian and political commentator, posted to X on Friday: "Authoritarian leader cult alert"

 

[bnew]

first the muslims and now the catholics are catching strays

 

[ajnapoleon]

Harris wasn’t black

 

[Jayou Ayen]

How can he be both the second coming of Jesus and the pope?




39

 

[BBG]

Damn am I really that washed?! The fukk is truth?!?!?!

 

[50CentStan]

first the muslims and now the catholics are catching strays

What he say about muslims?

 

[Elim Garak]

I said it in the other thread and will say it again. I think they should elect him Pope.

 

[tuckgod]

 

[Cool DOC]

This guy wakes up and goes headfirst into any types of f*ckery, so entertaining lol

 

[diggy]

Trump will become a Black Pastor next

 

[bnew]

What he say about muslims?

Spoiler: full text & large images

1/37
@acnewsitics
Trump is now openly mocking all those Muslims who voted for him.

[Quoted tweet]
Trump on imams: "I said, 'Do you want to die?' They said, 'We don't want to die.' I said, 'What about the 38 virgins?' They said, 'That's nonsense! We don't know anything about it.' And we won the state of Michigan."


https://video.twimg.com/amplify_video/1917985659303718912/vid/avc1/1280x720/qI7QNEiWnGvv0kCP.mp4

2/37
@MarkGPatterson
38? I thought it was 72. Inflation?



3/37
@egod0x




4/37
@SundaeDivine
Voting for Trump after the Muslim ban is like going back to the restaurant that gave you food poisoning because the breadsticks slapped.



5/37
@barbarikon
Fully deserved, I’d say.



6/37
@Artfulgiant256
He is nothing more than an old white privileged racist that can’t/wont admit to his racism starting down the common road of dementia and/or Alzheimer’s. Says a lot about our country. Lots of people like him. Unfortunately, he is also President. That fact says a lot about our country, too.



7/37
@electMikeHarvey
They should feel as used as Latinos for Trump.



8/37
@TheChudReport
He better knock it off or they’ll vote for him again.



9/37
@DjOmegaMVP
Muslims for Trumps “ I will vote for donal Trump, I will vote for Donald Trump” Trump makes fun of them in their own faces and they don’t care. MAGA IS A CULT.



10/37
@jade10wolf
Because they're illegals and he's going to deported them.



11/37
@Michael58523143
Shut up jack ass!!!!!!



12/37
@thereal_Osborne
Cry me a fukking river. Biden called half of America garbage and a threat to democracy… GFYS.



13/37
@WDWBarrett
Gretchen, Gretchen, Gretchen…



14/37
@Buster2214

15/37
@thebookviking
To be sure….they deserve it



16/37
@carolyn_from




17/37
@ErickBoe




18/37
@citygalsports
Um anyone else see this? Is it real? You can’t believe anything anymore.



https://video.twimg.com/amplify_video/1918012665906991104/vid/avc1/576x1024/RDzdHxJDvGphn81X.mp4

19/37
@Citation_Needed
Well, at least they got what they wanted in return, right?



20/37
@Rozemarijn97
I will never understand why they thought Trump would be more pro-Palestinian or Arab cause than Kamala.



21/37
@yehoshurizzgod
@RepRashida
@RashidaTlaib
@IlhanMN
@Ilhan





22/37
@TeaFleurde
It's 72 virgins, BTW.



23/37
@HereToEnrage
I thought it was funny personally



24/37
@M_Van_Something
Way to go @RashidaTlaib



25/37
@EvelynResists
This from a “so called” President of The USA.
Absolutely disgusting.



26/37
@hopisgroove78
Well they voted for it



27/37
@Tony28529089
No he is being honest



28/37
@huskerdjp
On the National Day of Prayer, wtaf!! This man is the anti-christ!!



29/37
@phyllisa99998
We tried to warn them.



30/37
@ChiMusicNut
Such disrespect. And the mind of a teen maybe (??) who would even think about it.



31/37
@OnlineXing
...AT A NATIONAL PRAYER EVENT



32/37
@coachgkap
Isn’t it 72?
SOB is terrible at math.



33/37
@zuzu447
And the fools got exactly what they deserved for voting for him.



34/37
@epaldelta
That's why you shouldn't support, never mind take a selfie with the head leopard of the Leopards Will Eat Your Face party.



35/37
@CYRFeelstheBern
Stupid people deserve to be mocked, even Muslims.



36/37
@RWingDogii
fukk you Dearborn.



37/37
@ruralmona
38? I thought it was 72! What a fukking dimwit imbecile!




To post tweets in this format, more info here: https://www.thecoli.com/threads/tips-and-tricks-for-posting-the-coli-megathread.984734/post-52211196

 

[bnew]

Catholic Bishops Flame Trump for Mocking Pope in Crazy Post

“Do not mock us,” New York’s Catholic bishops warned the president.

www.thedailybeast.com

Catholic Bishops Flame Trump for Mocking Pope in Crazy Post​

NOT LAUGHING

“Do not mock us,” New York’s Catholic bishops warned the president.​

Liam Archacki

News Reporter

Updated May 4 2025 3:05AM EDT Published May 3 2025 4:33PM EDT

Photo Illustration by Victoria Sunday/The Daily Beast/Getty Images

New York’s Catholic bishops—led by a favorite cardinal of Donald Trump—sharply rebuked the president over an AI-generated image he posted of himself as pope.

“There is nothing clever or funny about this image, Mr. President,” the New York Catholic Conference of Bishops said in a post on X Saturday. “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 White House did not immediately respond to the Daily Beast’s request for comment on the bishops’ statement.

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. https://t.co/ortxbkDlT5

— NYS Catholic Conference (@NYSCatholicConf) May 3, 2025

Trump, a non-Catholic, posted an AI-generated image of himself in papal white robes and a gilded mitre to Truth Social on Friday. The White House’s official X account later shared the post.

Asked earlier this week who should replace the late Pope Francis, who died last month, Trump joked that it should be him. However, he later suggested that it could be New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan.

“I must say, we have a cardinal that happens to be out of a place called New York who’s very good, so we’ll see what happens,” he told reporters earlier this week.

Dolan is the leader of New York’s conference of bishops, which condemned Trump over the post. The 75-year-old cardinal has long been an ally of Trump.

Dolan, the New York cardinal, has long been an ally of Trump, who is himself a New Yorker. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Dolan delivered a prayer at both of Trump’s presidential inaugurations. In 2020, Trump called Dolan “a great friend of mine,” to which the cardinal responded that the feeling was “mutual.”

Earlier this year, Dolan praised Trump by saying that he “takes his Christian faith seriously.”

Dolan has not made a personal comment about Trump’s post.

The Archdiocese of New York, the state’s conference of bishops, and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops did not immediately respond to the Daily Beast’s requests for comment.

Dolan delivered prayers at both of Trump’s inaugurations. SAUL LOEB/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Pope Francis, who died at 88 on Easter Monday after a stroke, was a fierce critic of Trump, especially his mass-deportation effort.

Trump and his wife Melania attended Francis’ funeral in front-row seats, where the homily seemed to reference Francis’ disapproval of the president.

Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic convert, met with Francis at the Vatican the day before he died.

Vance was asked on social media Saturday whether he was “fine with this disrespect and mocking of the Holy Father” by Bill Kristol, a political commentator who was an aide in former President George H.W. Bush’s administration.

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. https://t.co/2WQPsofVIH

— JD Vance (@JDVance) May 3, 2025

The VP defended Trump’s post and attacked Kristol’s neoconservatism, writing: “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.”

Many social media commentators have taken issue with Trump’s post, calling it offensive to Catholics.

Michael Steele, an MSNBC pundit who once led the Republican National Committee, said that the post “affirms how unserious and incapable [Trump] is.”

“At 78, he remains a 10yo child, emotionally scarred and broken while desperate to prove he could be somebody,” Steele added. “His problem: he can’t grow up to prove it.”

Morgan J. Freeman, a producer for films such as Desert Blue and Hurricane Streets, similarly tore into the president.

“This post is a massive insult to Catholics, Pope Francis’ family, friends & devotees, and to the present conclave,” he wrote.

 

[O.T.I.S.]

If Trump knew anything about the Vatican, he would chill tf out



Its the oldest Intelligence Agency that ever existed

 

[BlazedWun]

How many Catholics voted for him? congrats, you enabled a man that openly shyts on you and mocks you to your face.

And they will lie down and take it and say may I have another

 

[Htrb-nvr-blk-&-ug-as-evr]

…and nothing will happen. This old ass honk will laugh about it and do something dumb again next week.