Vance Responds After AI Photo Of Trump Goes Viral Online
Vice President JD Vance was forced to respond after President Donald Trump posted an AI-generated photo of him as the next pope went viral and was roundly criticized by many of the usual Never-Trump suspects.
“Hey, @JDVance, you fine with this disrespect and mocking of the Holy Father?” Bill Kristol, a so-called conservative and publisher of the now-defunct Weekly Standard magazine, wrote on X.
“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, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, noted in response to Kristol, who was a staunch advocate for the 2003 Iraq invasion as then-chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney.
Trump as pope is hilarious. So many are triggered over this. Calm down folks. He is just trolling. pic.twitter.com/BLU03wo8ti
— Sassafrass84 (@Sassafrass_84) May 3, 2025
Earlier this week, Vance recalled his special connection with Pope Francis, whom he met with just a day before the pontiff passed away at the age of 88 last month.
“I was one of the last people to talk to him. I just take it as a great honor and a sign from God to remember that you never know when your last day on this Earth is,” he said at the time.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) also didn’t take the bait from critics in response to the photo.
“Seeing is believing! A picture is worth a thousand words….Glad to report there is very positive reception and strong momentum for President Trump to be the next Pope. But I will be first to admit there has been some resistance,” Graham wrote in a post on X.
“Must keep your head down and plow forward — can’t let the naysayers win the day,” he continued. “Next week is crucial as the papal conclave convenes…. More updates to come!”
Trump quickly responded on Tuesday when reporters inquired about his preferred choice for the next leader of the Catholic Church.
“I’d like to be Pope,” he joked to reporters at the White House. “That would be my number one choice.”
The origins of the image remain unclear, and Trump offered no caption or explanation when he shared it. The AI-generated photo appeared across his accounts on Truth Social, Instagram, and X, and was later reposted by the White House on its official Instagram and X profiles.
Dubbed “Pope Trump” by some online, the image sparked immediate controversy on the left. Many religious observers, including Catholics, found it offensive—especially given that it was posted during a time of mourning following the death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday. Several users criticized the post as sacrilegious and misleading.
Michael Steele, former chairman of the Republican National Committee but who has since moved on to take a gig at far-left MSNBC and is a frequent GOP critic, condemned the timing and tone of the post, calling it further proof that Trump is “unserious and incapable.”
Left-leaning former Premier Matteo Renzi said the image was shameful. “This is an image that offends believers, insults institutions and shows that the leader of the right-wing world enjoys clowning around,” Renzi wrote on X. “Meanwhile, the US economy risks recession and the dollar loses value. The sovereignists are doing damage, everywhere.”
Others, however, including most Republicans, understand that Trump was merely trolling and have played along with the president’s joke this week. Among them was Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. “I was excited to hear that President Trump is open to the idea of being the next Pope,” he said Tuesday in a post on X. “The first Pope-U.S. President combination has many upsides,” he added. “Watching for white smoke … Trump MMXXVIII!”
Others on social media pointed out that some of the same people complaining about Trump’s AI-generated papal photo were silent when legitimate blasphemy is committed against the Catholic Church and Western Christianity in general.
