Donald Trump announced that he he did not remove the controversial AI-generated Jesus image of himself because of the backlash he was facing, particularly from other right-wing conservatives. The president spoke out about why he removed the post and his thought process about why he shared it in the first place. He also pushed back against Pope Leo discussing politics, while speaking to CBS News on Monday.
Trump posted an AI-image on Truth Social that showed him dressed in a white robe, in the style of Jesus Christ wearing similar clothes. Just like the Messiah, Trump’s hand was placed on a man on a hospital bed surrounded by soldiers, nursing staff, bald eagles, and even the American flag. Conservatives, like a certain Republican senator, immediately reacted to the post, calling it inappropriate or blasphemous. Trump responded to the backlash and explained why he had posted the image that he thought was made by a “very beautiful, talented artist.”
President Trump claims the viral image that was posted on Truth was not a depiction of him as Jesus Christ but was him being depicted as a doctor.
Reporter: Did you post that picture of yourself depicted as Jesus Christ?
Trump: I did post it, and I thought it was me as a doctor… pic.twitter.com/4pfSRFPdrp
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) April 13, 2026
“I viewed that as a picture of me being a doctor in fixing — you had the Red Cross right there, you had, you know, medical people surrounding me. And I was like the doctor, you know, as a little fun playing the doctor and making people better. So that’s what it was viewed as. That’s what most people thought, ” he said, doubling down on what he had told the reporters in front of the White House alongside the DoorDash driver earlier that day.
When he was question about why he removed the post, Trump said, “Normally I don’t like doing that, but I didn’t want to have anybody be confused. People were confused.”
One of the “confused” was a conservative activist, Riley Gaines, who has a massive following across social media platforms. Initially, she wrote, “Why? Seriously, I cannot understand why he’d post this,” Gaines posted, adding, “A little humility would serve him well.” Later, after he removed the post, she praised Trump, calling it “amazing.” She said that “we’re imperfect people. I know I am.”
Trump was asked if he had taken down the post after he received criticism from conservative followers like Gaines. Mentioning her specifically, the president replied, “I didn’t list to Riley Gaines. I’m not a big fan of Riley, actually.”
Pope Leo says he has “no fear of the Trump administration” after he was asked about President Trump’s Truth Social post calling the pontiff “weak on crime, and terrible for foreign policy.”
“We are not politicians, we don’t deal with foreign policy with the same perspective he… pic.twitter.com/37LCeprhUc
— CBS News (@CBSNews) April 13, 2026
And while talking about the naysayers, Trump also took on the Catholic Church and Pope Leo XIV who had spoken out about the false narrative that God was endorsing the military operation on Iran. The 79-year-old said that he had “done more for the Catholic Church than any president in the last hundred years.” He claimed, “During COVID I gave them billions of dollars. They were gonna go under. I gave them billions of dollars for education and that’s not the right way to treat somebody that’s been so good.
Trump said that he had watched a 60 Minutes interview with Pope Leo who spoke about deportations and the Iran war. He said that the pope was “wrong,” adding, “I don’t think he should be getting into politics.”
The controversial Jesus AI image comes at a sensitive moment for Trump, as conservatives are traditionally his religious supporters. The picture seemed to depict him as Jesus healing while a war was going on, sparking outrage. As Gaines summed up how many right-wing supporters felt when they saw the post, “God shall not be mocked.”
