Pope Trump? US President’s Papal avatar goes viral, netizens say ‘make Vatican great again

Pope Trump? US President’s Papal avatar goes viral, netizens say ‘make Vatican great again

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, May 3, 2025: US President Donald Trump on Saturday posted an AI-generated image of himself dressed in papal attire days after jokingly declaring his choice for the new Vatican leader.

 

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A post shared by President Donald J. Trump (@realdonaldtrump)

Netizens share mixed reactions

The POTUS new avatar broke the internet with several social media users dubbing the post humorous, calling to “Make Vatican Great Again" while some criticised it as insensitive, accusing Trump of mocking Pope Francis’ death.

“Funniest man alive and it’s not even close," a user commented.

“Make Vatican Great Again," commented another.

“I just don’t understand how you can hate on this guy😂," another user commented.

Several social media users also accused him of mocking Francis’ death.

“This is disrespectful to the church and God himself… he’s literally the antichrist," one person commented.

Another wrote, “This is disgusting and entirely offensive."

A third person posted, “This is extremely disrespectful and narcissistic. republicans really voted for that."

“I’d like to be Pope," Says Trump

Amidst ongoing discussions about the selection of the next Pope, he recently jokingly said that he would ‘like to be Pope’.

When the US President was asked about who should lead Vatican City, he responded with a playful remark.

“I’d like to be Pope," he quipped, adding, “That would be my number one choice."

While acknowledging he holds no official preference for the successor to Pope Francis, the US President did single out one prominent American figure.

“I might say we have a Cardinal that happens to be out of a place called New York who is very good. So we’ll see what happens," he stated, referring to Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the Archbishop of New York.

Pope Francis dies at 88

Pope Francis died on April 21 at the age of 88 at his residence in the Vatican’s Casa Santa Marta. The news was officially announced by Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Camerlengo. Pope Francis had served as the head of the Catholic Church for twelve years since his election in March 2013.

The nearly-2,000-year-old organisation is looking for a new spiritual head following the passing of Pope Francis. About 135 Catholic cardinals will soon be tasked with entering a secret conclave to choose the next pope, with no clear frontrunner in sight.