United States President, Donald Trump, has addressed the controversy surrounding an artificial intelligence-generated image depicting him in papal attire, a photo that appeared on his Truth Social account last Friday and was subsequently reshared by the White House on X.
The image sparked backlash, particularly from the Catholic Conference of New York State.
In a strongly worded statement, the group condemned the portrayal, noting the timing of the post following the death of Pope Francis.
“There is nothing clever or funny about” the image, the statement read. “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.”
Despite the criticism, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the President’s intentions.
She stated that Trump had traveled to Italy to pay respects to the late Pope Francis and described him as “a staunch champion for Catholics and religious liberty.”
Speaking from the Oval Office on Monday during an unrelated announcement about the 2027 NFL Draft, Trump weighed in personally, brushing off the criticism and pointing fingers at the media.
“You don’t mean the Catholics, you mean the fake news media. The Catholics loved it,” he said in response to a reporter’s question. “I had nothing to do with it. Somebody made up a picture of me dressed like the Pope and they put it out on the internet. That’s not me that did it. I have no idea where it came from. Maybe it was AI, but I know nothing about it.”
He added that he first saw the image on Sunday evening. “My wife thought it was cute,” he remarked, also taking the opportunity to make a lighthearted joke: “To the best of my knowledge, Popes aren’t big on getting married. Are they? Not that we know of.”
As for concerns about the image undermining the credibility of the White House’s social media presence, Trump was dismissive, “Give me a break, somebody did it in fun. It’s fun,” he said.
