Vance Defends Trump’s Post Depicting Ai-generated Image Of Himself As Pope

Vice President JD Vance defended President Donald Trump after he posted an AI image of himself as pope on Truth Social, dismissing the post as a joke.

“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 wrote in a post on X on Saturday responding to a question from Bill Kristol, editor-at-large at The Bulwark, on whether or not Vance was “fine with this disrespect and mocking of the holy father.”

The church is set to begin the papal conclave on May 7 to choose a new pope, following the death of Pope Francis, who was 88, on Easter Monday. Vance is a Catholic and was one of the last people to meet with Francis before his death.

Trump posted the image a few days after he joked that he’d like to be the next leader of the Catholic Church, saying that he would be his own “number one choice” for the position. He then proceeded to recommend Timothy Dolan, a cardinal based in New York, for the papacy. A U.S. cardinal has never held the position.

The official X account for the New York State Catholic Conference criticized Trump’s post, which was also reposted by the White House X account.

“There is nothing clever or funny about this image, Mr. President. We just buried our beloved Pope Francis and the cardinals are about to enter a solemn conclave to elect a new successor of St. Peter. Do not mock us,” they wrote.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) seemingly joined in on the joke, showing his “support” for Trump as head of the Catholic Church in a X post Saturday.

“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. “Must keep your head down and plow forward — can’t let the naysayers win the day. Next week is crucial as the papal conclave convenes. … More updates to come!”