WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump says he knew nothing about an artificially generated image of him dressed as the pope that was posted to his Truth Social account over the weekend.
“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, I just saw it last evening,” Trump told reporters on May 5 from the Oval Office.
The image that the White House reshared has drawn criticism from Catholics, who are still mourning the death of Pope Francis. Trump attended his funeral last week alongside other world leaders. A papal conclave to select a new pope is set to begin on May 7.
More: A conclave like no other: How papal pick gathering is different this year
Talking to reporters on May 5 about the artificial image that appeared on his account, Trump brought up first lady Melania Trump and said, “Actually my wife thought it was cute. She said, ‘Isn’t that nice?'”
“Actually, I would not be able to be married. though,” he said. “To the best of my knowledge, pope’s aren’t big on being married, are they? Not that we know of.”
U.S. President Donald Trump, first lady Melania Trump, France’s President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron stand as the coffin is carried on the day of the funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, April 26, 2025. REUTERS/Dylan Martinez SEARCH “POPE FUNERAL PICTURES” FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH “WIDER IMAGE” FOR ALL STORIES.
Trump also accused the media of ginning up the controversy as he was questioned about Catholic frustration with the image during a question and answer session at the White House.
“They can’t take a joke,” Trump told reporters, referring to the media. “The Catholic’s loved it.”
As for whether it should have been shared from the official account of the White House on social media, Trump said “give me a break” and that “somebody did it in fun, it’s fine, you have to have a little fun, don’t you.”
U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks on the NFL Draft in the Oval Office of the White House on May 05, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Vice President JD Vance, who is Catholic, also framed the image as a joke.
After anti-Trump Republican and Bulwark editor-at-large Bill Kristol tagged Vance in an X post that asked “are you fine with this disrespect and mocking of the Holy Father,” the vice president swatted back.
“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,” Vance told Kristol, an advocate of the Iraqi invasion.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump says he had ‘nothing to do with’ AI image of him as pope