President Donald Trump may think Catholics “loved” the AI of him as pope, but a at least one cardinal and one bishop beg to differ.
The image of Trump as the pope, which was posted on Trump’s social media May 2, drew the ire of New York’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who said the image “wasn’t good.”
Watch:
🚨 LMAO…!!
REPORTER: Catholics are not happy you posted an image of you as the Pope.
TRUMP: “Ohh, I see. You mean, they can’t take a joke? You don’t mean the Catholics, you mean the fake news media. The Catholics loved it.”
“Maybe it was AI… my wife thought it was cute.… pic.twitter.com/zwKdvXzx0K
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 5, 2025
Trump, on the other hand, called it a joke.
“You mean they can’t take a joke. You don’t mean the Catholics, you mean the fake news media. Not the — the Catholics loved it,” Trump said. “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 also said he was innocent in the matter.
“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,” Trump said.. 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.”
Trump added he first saw the image Sunday night, and First Lady Melania Trump liked it.
“Actually, my wife thought it was cute. She said, ‘Isn’t that nice?’ Actually, I would not be able to be married, though. That would be a lot. To the best of my knowledge, popes aren’t big on getting married, are they?” he said.
One reporter asked Trump about it being posted on the White House’s social media account and if it would lessen the integrity of the account.
“Give me a break. It was just, somebody did it in fun. It’s fine, have to have a little fun, don’t you?” he added.
An American bishop believes Trump should apologize.
“This is deeply offensive to Catholics, especially during this sacred time that we are still mourning the death of Pope Francis and praying for the guidance of the Holy Spirit for the election of our new Pope,” Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Springfield, Illinois, wrote on X.
The New York State Catholic Conference said there is “nothing clever or funny” about it.
The image comes as Catholics mourn the death of Pope Francis, who died Easter Monday. He was 88.
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