President Trump shared a photo generated by the AI-Even disguised as a pope only a few days after telling journalists that he “would like to be the pope”.
The image – that Mr. Trump published for the first time on his social media platform Truth Social – was also shared by the official account of social media of the White House on Friday. It comes like cardinal around the world should meet in the city of the Vatican to choose the successor of Pope Francis as head of the Catholic Church.
The image shows Mr. Trump seated on a chair ornate, dressed in white papal clothes and hairdressing, with a raised finger.
Mr. Trump, who is not Catholic, joked journalists on Tuesday in front of the White House that he would like to succeed Francis, who died at 88 last month.
“I would like to be pope. It would be my choice n ° 1,” he said.
The president noted that he had no preference in fact, adding: “I must say that we have a cardinal who happens to be outside a place called New York which is very good, so we will see what is going on.”
Trump was referring to Timothy Cardinal Dolan, New York Archbishop. Although there was never a Pope of the United States, Francis was the first of the Americas.
Francis died of a stroke which finally led to irreversible heart failure, according to a certificate of death issued by the Vatican.
Mr. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump Among the dignitaries who attended Francis’ funeral last week. During his stay, Trump met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. A few days later, Ukrainian and American officials sign A joint economic investment agreement on Wednesday, which includes the granting of access to the United States to Ukrainian minerals in rare land.
Dan Kitwood / Getty Images 
Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni, according to Reuters, refused to comment on the image shared by Mr. Trump in a briefing with journalists on the election process of a new Pope, who begins on May 7. Some 133 cardinals will choose the next pope, without a clear imprint in sight.
The image generated by AI has sparked a backlash of some on social networks, while others defended it as a joke.
The former president of the National Republican Committee, Michael Steele, Frankish critic of the president, criticized the post and said “to affirm how inserted and incapable (Mr. Trump)”.
The New York Catholic Conference accused Mockery Trump.
“There is nothing intelligent or funny in this image, Mr. President. We have just built our beloved pope François and the cardinals are about to enter a solemn conclave to elect a new successor from Saint-Pierre. Do not make fun of us,” they wrote on X.
Debbie Macchia, 60, supporter of the president outside his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida, Saturday morning, told Reuters that he “joked clearly”.
“But I wouldn’t want to see them do anything sacrilege with the Pope, or anything,” she said.
CBS News contacted the Conference of Catholic Bishops of the United States to comment.
This is not the first time that Mr. Trump or the White House has shared a photo generated by the president’s AI.
In mid-February, their official accounts on social networks published a different image of Mr. Trump bearing a crown and subtitles “The Prix de la congestion is dead. Manhattan, and all New York, is saved. Live the king!”
