"Honestly Disgusting": Trump Slammed for "Playing Jesus" After Posting AI Image, Then Deletes It in 12 Hours Saying "Not Jesus, a Doctor"

According to The Financial News, President Donald Trump posted an image on social media on the 12th that depicted him in a Jesus-like manner, then removed it 12 hours later. The deletion appears to have come in response to fierce backlash from the conservative Christian community, a core part of his base. He then offered an unconvincing explanation, claiming the figure was "not Jesus but a doctor."

On the 12th (local time), President Donald Trump uploaded to his Truth Social account an image believed to have been generated by artificial intelligence (AI).
In the image, President Donald Trump is dressed in white and surrounded by a radiant glow. With his right hand, he touches the forehead of a man who appears to be a patient, while his left hand holds an object emitting bright light. Around him are symbols of the United States of America, including the Stars and Stripes, the Statue of Liberty, and a bald eagle, and a variety of figures such as soldiers and nurses are shown looking up to him in reverence.
Although the post carried no separate caption, public reaction was swift and negative. Critics accused President Donald Trump of likening himself to Jesus. The backlash was especially strong among conservative Protestantism, which has been a key support base for him.
Megan Basham, a well-known conservative Protestant author, criticized, "I don't know if the president did this for fun or if he was under the influence of something. I have no idea how he plans to explain away this outrageous blasphemy, but he needs to take the post down immediately and ask forgiveness from the American people and from God."
Isabel Brown, a conservative Christian podcaster with close ties to White House insiders, likewise condemned it as "an honestly disgusting and unacceptable post."
Michael Knowles, another conservative Christian podcaster who has supported President Donald Trump, also insisted that the post had to be removed.

In the end, the post was deleted just 12 hours after it went up.
The New York Times (NYT) noted, "President Donald Trump does not apologize for words or actions that hurt or offend people," pointing out that "he did not apologize last week either, when he threatened to wipe out the civilization of the Islamic Republic of Iran." NYT added that it is rare for President Donald Trump to delete a social media post.
Some observers suggested the deletion may have been prompted by outside pressure rather than his own initiative.
The Washington Post (WP) reported that a meeting of a religious freedom advisory council convened by President Donald Trump was scheduled for that day. The gathering was to include Pastor Paula White-Cain, Pastor Franklin Graham, and Cardinal Timothy Dolan.
Along with the deletion, an explanation for the post was also offered.
On the 13th at the White House, President Donald Trump acknowledged to reporters asking about the image that he had personally posted it, then explained, "I did not fully recognize the religious imagery in the picture. I posted it believing it depicted not Jesus but a doctor."
He went on to say, "I understood that in the picture I was a doctor. The claim that it's Jesus is the kind of thing only fake news would make up."
However, he did not back away from asserting, "I make people better people. I make them a lot better."
The controversial post by President Donald Trump appeared shortly after he published a harshly worded attack on Pope Leo XIV.
Targeting Pope Leo XIV, who has called for an end to the war with the Islamic Republic of Iran, President Donald Trump claimed the pope was "soft on crime and the worst on foreign policy," and argued that if it were not for him, the pope would never have become the first American to be elected to the papacy.
Previously, Pope Leo XIV had said in recent prayer meetings and on social media that "God does not bless any war" and that "delusions of omnipotence are fueling war," remarks widely interpreted as criticism aimed at President Donald Trump and senior officials of the United States of America.
y27k@fnnews.com Seo Yoon-kyung Reporter