It happened fast. One minute you're scrolling through Truth Social or X, and the next, there he is: Donald Trump, sitting in an ornate chair, wearing the full-on white cassock and a towering miter. A trump with pope hat moment that felt like a fever dream. If you saw it in early May 2025, you weren't alone. Millions of people did. And honestly, it caused a total meltdown from the Vatican to the White House.
But here is the thing: it wasn't real. Obviously. Yet, the context surrounding it made it way more explosive than your average internet meme. We’re talking about a world-class PR disaster that landed right in the middle of a papal transition.
The Night the Pope Hat Went Viral
Late Friday night on May 2, 2025, the official Truth Social account for Donald Trump dropped the image. No caption. Just the visual. It showed Trump looking stern, draped in white and gold papal vestments, wearing a large crucifix, and holding up a finger as if he were mid-blessing.
Within hours, the official White House X account (yes, the actual @WhiteHouse account) reposted it. That’s when things got messy. It wasn't just a "troll" move anymore; it was coming from the highest office in the land.
Why then? Well, the timing was, to put it mildly, "unfortunate." Pope Francis had passed away just 11 days earlier on April 21, 2025, following a stroke. The Catholic world was literally in the middle of the novemdiales—the nine days of official mourning. Cardinals were already packing their bags for the conclave to elect a successor.
Then, out of nowhere, you've got the President of the United States appearing as a "candidate" for the Holy See.
"I'd Like to be Pope"
This wasn't just a random AI prompt. Just days before the image appeared, Trump was talking to reporters on the White House lawn. When someone asked who he thought should succeed Francis, he smiled and quipped:
"I’d like to be Pope. That would be my number one choice."
He later walked it back, saying he didn't really have a preference, though he mentioned Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York was a "very good" guy. But the seed was sown. The AI image felt like a follow-up to that joke, and for the New York State Catholic Conference, the joke wasn't funny. They fired back on X: "There is nothing clever or funny about this image, Mr. President... Do not mock us."
The Tech Behind the Mitre: Midjourney and the Ethics of "The Glow"
If you look closely at the trump with pope hat image, it has that unmistakable "AI glow." The lighting is a bit too perfect. The shadows on the ornate chair are hyper-realistic but slightly "off" in a way that suggests a machine-learning model like Midjourney was at work.
This isn't the first time AI has put a world leader in church clothes. Remember the "Pope in a Puffer Jacket"? That 2023 viral hit of Pope Francis looking like he was about to drop a rap album was the precursor to this. But while the Puffer Pope was seen as a harmless bit of tech-whimsy, "Pope Trump" hit a nerve because it felt political.
Why our brains fall for it
- The Lighting: AI excels at "Rembrandt lighting," making figures look heroic or divinely chosen.
- The Texture: You can practically feel the silk of the vestments in these renders.
- The Micro-expressions: The AI captured Trump’s signature "stern but focused" look perfectly.
Dr. Emily West from the Center for Digital Integrity pointed out that we're entering an era where "trusting our eyes is an act of faith." When the White House shares a deepfake, the line between "satire" and "official communication" gets so thin you can't see it.
The Fallout: "They Can't Take a Joke"
By Monday morning, May 5, the pressure was mounting. Trump, never one to back down, addressed the controversy while heading to a meeting. He basically pulled the "Who, me?" card.
"I had nothing to do with it," he told reporters. He claimed someone else made the picture and put it on the internet. He even mentioned that Melania thought it was "cute."
But the damage was done. Former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi called it "shameful" and "megalomania." The Vatican, usually tight-lipped, was visibly annoyed. Their spokesman, Matteo Bruni, stayed silent, but the Italian press was ruthless. La Repubblica basically called it an insult to the institution of the papacy.
A Breakdown of the Reactions:
- The Devout: Genuinely offended. The papacy is a sacred role, and using it as a prop during a period of mourning felt sacrilegious.
- The Critics: Viewed it as proof of "unseriousness." They argued that while the economy was facing inflation and recession risks, the administration was playing with AI filters.
- The MAGA Base: Loved it. They saw it as the ultimate "trigger" for the establishment and the "fake news" media. To them, it was just a meme.
How to Spot a "Pope Trump" Deepfake
If you see more of these—and you will—there are a few tell-tale signs to look for. AI still struggles with the "small stuff."
- The Hands: In the original viral image, the finger raised in blessing looks a bit rubbery. AI often struggles with the way skin folds over knuckles.
- The Jewelry: Check the crucifix. Often, AI will make the cross asymmetrical or give it "melting" details that wouldn't exist on a real gold piece.
- The Background: Look at the architecture. In "Pope Trump" images, the Vatican-style backgrounds often feature columns that lead to nowhere or windows that don't match up.
Moving Forward: The New Reality of Political Memes
The trump with pope hat saga isn't just about a hat. It's about how we consume information in 2026. We are living in a "post-truth" landscape where a sitting president can share a synthetic image of himself as a religious icon, claim he didn't do it, and have his base cheer for it.
It's kinda wild when you think about it.
If you're worried about being fooled by the next viral deepfake, here's what you can actually do:
- Check the source: Did it come from a verified journalist or a meme account?
- Reverse image search: Use Google Lens to see where the image first appeared. Most AI "hits" start on Reddit or Discord before hitting the mainstream.
- Look for the label: Increasingly, platforms like X and Instagram are adding "Made with AI" tags. Don't ignore them.
The Vatican has since moved on, eventually electing Pope Leo XIV, but the image of Trump in a miter remains a permanent fixture of the internet's "weird" archive. It’s a reminder that in the age of generative AI, the truth is often less interesting—but far more important—than the meme.
👉 See also: Vietnam War Political Cartoon: Why These Brutal Sketches Still Pack a Punch
Stay skeptical. The next one will probably be even more convincing.