On the 7th, ahead of the conclave to elect the next pope, U.S. President Donald Trump posted a synthetic image of himself dressed in the pope's robes on his social media.
President Trump uploaded an image of himself styled like the leader of the Catholic Church, the pope, to Truth Social on the 2nd (local time).
In this photo, which appears to be generated by artificial intelligence (AI), President Trump is wearing a white vestment typical of the pope, adorned with a gold cross necklace. He is holding his right index finger to the sky with a firm expression.
After Pope Francis passed away on the 21st of last month, President Trump responded to questions from reporters about his preferred successor, saying, 'I would like to be pope. That's my number one choice.'
He noted that he does not have a preferred cardinal, but mentioned, 'There is a very good cardinal in New York.' This is interpreted as a reference to the conservative Cardinal Timothy Dolan.
The late Pope Francis had been at odds with President Trump over various international issues since the beginning of the latter's administration. A notable incident occurred during the 2016 presidential election when Pope Francis directly criticized Trump's pledge to build a 'border wall with Mexico,' stating, 'A person who only wants to build walls is not a Christian.' At the time, Trump retorted, 'It's disgraceful for a religious leader to question someone's faith.'