President Donald Trump faced new scrutiny this week after sharing an artificial intelligence-generated photo on social media. The latest photos show Jesus embracing the 79-year-old. Earlier, Trump shared a photo that critics said depicted himself as Jesus Christ.
Trump was forced to delete the first image due to backlash.
Christian leaders react
Franklin Graham, one of Trump’s most prominent Christian supporters, welcomed the president’s clarification after facing backlash for an earlier post.
“I appreciate the president clarifying that this was not his intention at all and removing the post,” Graham, president and CEO of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, told Newsweek on Wednesday.
New image shows Jesus embracing Trump
Days after deleting the earlier image, Trump shared another AI-generated visual — this time depicting Jesus embracing him.
The photo shows Jesus with an arm around Trump’s shoulders and a hand on his chest, with the two figures leaning against each other against a glowing background with an American flag.
“The radical left crazies may not like this, but I think it’s pretty good!!! President DJT,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.
Trump’s Jesus Photo
The latest post comes after backlash over a now-deleted artificial intelligence image that appeared to depict Trump as Jesus wearing flowing robes and performing healings.
“This should be removed immediately. There is no context in which this behavior is acceptable,” Christian activist Sean Feucht wrote on X.
MAGA influencer Riley Gaines took issue with the article on Monday, writing: “Why? I honestly don’t understand why he posted this. Is he looking for a response? Does he really think so? Regardless, two things are true. 1) A little humanity would do him good 2) God is not to be laughed at.”
“This is outrageous. It crosses the line,” Christian Broadcasting Network reporter David Brody wrote on the X . “Supporters can support the mission, but they can also reject it.”
“I wonder if the president thought he was funny, or if he was under the influence of a substance, or what possible explanation he had for this heinous act of profanity,” conservative author and commentator Megan Basham wrote. “But he needs to take this down immediately and ask for forgiveness from the American people and from God.”
Trump defends deleted images
By Monday morning, the original image had been removed from Truth Social. Trump later defended the post while speaking to reporters outside the White House.
“I think that’s a reflection of who I am as a doctor,” he said. “You know, it’s fun to play a doctor and make people better. So that’s what people think. That’s what most people think.”
The president added that he removed the image to avoid confusion and blamed media coverage for amplifying the controversy.
“I don’t want to confuse anyone,” he said, blaming the backlash on “fake news.”
