Mike Johnson Says He Asked Trump to Remove AI Post, Downplays ‘Sacrilege’ Claims
'That was the Right Thing to Do': Mike Johnson Moves Into Damage Control After Donald Trump’s AI ‘Jesus’ Post Backfires
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Tuesday, April 14, said he asked President Donald Trump to take down the AI-generated post depicting him as a Jesus-like figure. Trump sparked backlash with a controversial post on Sunday, April 12, after his war of words with Pope Leo XIV. However, the image was deleted later after Trump received criticism from internet users, including his supporters.
According to The Hill, while speaking with reporters at the Capitol, Mike Johnson addressed the controversial post shared by Trump. He said he asked Trump to delete it. He said, “I talked to the President about it as soon as I saw it and told him I don’t think it was being received in the same way he intended it. He agreed, and he pulled it down. That was the right thing to do.”
Johnson added that the President shared his opinion about how he viewed the post and insisted that it wasn’t “sacrilegious at all.” He went on to argue that the 79-year-old president has shown ‘great respect’ for Christians who may have been offended by the post.
Mike Johnson asked Trump to delete the controversial AI post.
Soon after the clip surfaced online, several users criticized him for unquestioningly supporting the POTUS no matter what. A user said, “Damage control working overtime. If you have to explain the joke or the post, it already failed. We see it for what it is.”
Another user commented, “This is a 0/10 in terms of leadership and spiritual integrity. Mike Johnson is supposed to be a man of the Word, yet he is acting as a PR agent for blasphemy.”
Internet users slam Mike Johnson's defense.
One more comment read, “Of course he didn’t think it was sacrilegious; Trump doesn’t know anything about religion.” Another added, “He can do whatever he wants. They’ll let him get away with it and find excuses anyway.” A disappointed user said, “The way he intended it, lol. These people are delusional liars.”
Internet users slam Mike Johnson's defense.
Notably, Trump rarely deletes his social media posts, no matter how controversial they are. Nonetheless, this time he took down the AI-generated post after receiving backlash. He went on to defend himself by suggesting that he had been presented as a “doctor.”
The Hill report states that Trump, on Monday, while responding to a reporter’s question, said, “It’s supposed to be me as a doctor, making people better, and I do make people better,” further tying the image to the Red Cross. He went on to assert that the idea that it depicted Jesus was created by ‘fake news’
Trump offers a defense over his controversial post.
On the other hand, while appearing on Fox News’ Special Report with Bret Baier, Vice President JD Vance also defended Trump. He insisted that the matter was not “newsworthy,” further saying that Trump was “posting a joke,” with the since-deleted AI post. He also praised the MAGA supporter for being unfiltered and mentioned that “it’s totally reasonable” that the President has disagreements with Pope Leo.
JD Vance reacts to Trump's controversial Jesus post.
Pope Leo recently criticized Trump and his allies for their immigration policy and ongoing wars. This prompted a scathing reaction from POTUS on his social media, where he went on to describe the spiritual leader as “weak” and “terrible.”