US President Donald Trump on Monday distanced himself from an AI-generated image of him dressed in papal regalia, which was posted on both his Truth Social account and the White House X page over the weekend, saying, “I had nothing to do with it.”
The image, showing Trump in white robes and a ceremonial headdress resembling those worn by the Pope, triggered outrage online, particularly among Catholic communities mourning the death of Pope Francis, who died April 21 at the age of 88.
His funeral was held April 26 at St. Peter’s Square.
“I had nothing to do with it,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “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.”
Despite Trump’s denial of involvement, the image remains on his Truth Social account and the White House’s X page.
The image circulated just days after Trump joked during a television interview that he would be his “number one choice” for the papacy.
“I’d like to be Pope,” he said, before naming Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York as “a very good” option. Cardinal Dolan is not among the frontrunners to succeed Pope Francis when the conclave begins May 7, according to Politico.
Asked whether he was aware of Catholics offended by the image, Trump said, “They can’t take a joke,” before redirecting blame: “You don’t mean the Catholics; you mean the fake news media. The Catholics loved it.”
The New York Times reported that responses from Catholic leadership suggest otherwise.
Cardinal Dolan, currently in Rome for the conclave, told reporters Sunday that he hoped Trump was not responsible for the image. Asked whether he found it offensive, Dolan avoided a direct answer but called it a “brutta figura,” or “bad impression.”
Dennis Poust, executive director of the New York State Catholic Conference, which represents the state’s Catholic bishops, said in a statement to The New York Times: “It’s never appropriate to ridicule or mock the papacy.”
Trump’s wife, Melania Trump, is Roman Catholic and, according to Trump, approved of the image. “Actually, my wife thought it was cute,” he said Monday. “She said, ‘Isn’t that nice?’”
Vice President J.D. Vance, a Catholic convert, downplayed the controversy. “I’m fine with people telling jokes,” he posted on social media.
But the online reaction was far from amused.
One user on X wrote: “In no realm is this trolling or funny… if you are Catholic, it’s offensive. If you are anyone else, it’s just plain stupid and should legitimately make you roll your eyes. The US Presidency used to mean something, but Trump just turned it into Head Troll.”
