Trump launches new attack on Pope Leo as he posts bizarre AI image

WorldPolitics
13 Apr 2026 • 3:42 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

The world’s most free-thinking newspaper

Trump launches new attack on Pope Leo as he posts bizarre AI image

  • President Trump criticized Pope Leo XIV on Truth Social, labeling him as "WEAK" on crime and "terrible" on foreign policy.
  • Trump's remarks followed Pope Leo's condemnation of his warning that an "entire civilization will die tonight" concerning Iran and the Pope's suggestion of a "delusion of omnipotence" fueling the US-Iran conflict.
  • Trump claimed the Catholic Church chose Pope Leo XIV because he was American, believing it was the best way to deal with him, stating, "If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican."
  • After his lengthy post, Trump uploaded an AI-generated image depicting himself as Jesus, placing a shining hand on a sleeping man's forehead, surrounded by other figures and military imagery.
  • Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Trump loyalist, publicly denounced his posts on X, stating she was "praying against it" and criticizing his attack on the Pope and the self-depiction as Jesus.

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