President Donald Trump has deleted a controversial AI-generated image depicting himself as a Jesus-like figure wearing a white robe with a glowing hand on a sick man’s forehead, after the post sparked fierce backlash from both sides of the political spectrum, including from some of his most ardent supporters . The now-deleted image, which featured the Statue of Liberty, fighter jets, an eagle, a nurse, a praying woman and what appeared to be a soldier in uniform, was posted less than an hour after Trump launched a scathing attack on Pope Leo XIV, calling him “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy” . Prominent conservative activist Riley Gaines wrote that “God shall not be mocked,” while Christian activist Sean Feucht demanded the image be deleted immediately, stating: “There’s no context where this is acceptable” . David Brody, a journalist with the Christian Broadcasting Network, said: “This goes too far. It crosses the line” .
When asked by reporters why he deleted the post, Trump claimed he did not bow to backlash from his supporters, saying: “I didn’t listen to Riley Gaines. I’m not a big fan of Riley, actually” . He offered a bizarre explanation, stating: “I viewed that as a picture of me being a doctor in fixing — you had the Red Cross right there, you had medical people surrounding me. And I was like the doctor, you know, as a little fun playing the doctor and making people better” . Conservative pundit Carmine Sabia was among the harshest critics, writing: “I support Trump on most things but I will forever support my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ before any man or woman. What Trump did is reprehensible. I cannot imagine the narcissism it takes to post that” .
The controversy erupted as the war of words between Trump and Pope Leo XIV escalated into one of the most public confrontations between a US president and the Vatican in modern history. Pope Leo, speaking to reporters aboard the papal plane en route to Algeria, delivered a firm rebuttal: “I have no fear of the Trump administration or speaking out loudly of the message of the Gospel, which is what I believe I am here to do, what the Church is here to do” . The pontiff added: “We are not politicians. We don’t deal with foreign policy with the same perspective he might understand it, but I do believe in the message of the Gospel, as a peacemaker” . Trump had earlier written on Truth Social: “Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy. I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon” .
