Vance defends Trump's post depicting himself as pope amid criticism

Vice President JD Vance defended President Trump for sharing a photo of himself as the pope, writing in a Saturday social media post he's "fine with people telling jokes."The big picture: While Vance, a Catholic, brushed off the seemingly AI-generated photo of the president in papal vestments, others condemned the controversial image."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," wrote Vance in response to a question from commentator Bill Kristol on whether he was "fine with this disrespect and mocking of the Holy Father."The president shared the head-turning image on his Truth Social Friday night after telling reporters earlier in the week that he would "like to be pope."The official White House account reposted the image on X.Driving the news: The New York State Catholic Conference, which represents the state's bishops, rebuked the post in a Saturday post shared to X, saying, "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," the post read. "Do not mock us."The White House did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.Zoom out: The conclave to elect the late Pope Francis' successor begins May 7.Francis died on April 21 after a historic tenure that pushed the Church into more progressive territory.Meeting with Vance was one of Francis' final acts before his death, despite his open criticism of some of the administration's policies, notably on immigration. Trump and first lady Melania Trump joined other world leaders at the Vatican for Francis' funeral last month.Zoom in: The Rev. James Martin, a Jesuit priest and writer, wrote in a post shared to X Saturday that he found Trump's post "deeply offensive" but "will presume that Mr. Trump meant this light-heartedly."However, he noted, "imagine the incandescent outrage, the swift condemnation, and the individual and joint protests from the US bishops if this had been done by Joe Biden or Barack Obama."Yes, but: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) pushed the joke further, writing on X Saturday that "there is very positive reception and strong momentum for President Trump to be the next Pope."MAGA influencer Jack Posobiec wrote on X, "I'm Catholic. We've all been making jokes about the upcoming Pope selection all week.""It's called a sense of humor," he added.Between the lines: Trump has signed several executive orders centered around faith, such as one on Thursday that established a presidential commission on religious liberty.But some of his sweeping policies — even those related to religion, such as his task force to root out "anti-Christian bias" — have been met with condemnation from faith leaders.Go deeper: Trump's immigration orders rebuked by Christian leaders

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