Trump will be bolstered by 'over-the-top' praise for deleted Jesus picture: analysis

President Donald Trump's deletion of an AI-generated image depicting himself as Jesus Christ from Truth Social appears to have only temporarily dampened his most devoted supporters. According to analysis from Salon columnist Amanda Marcotte of MAGA influencer responses, the cycle of worship and damage control is already underway, with Trump loyalists praising his swift action while preparing to resume their comparisons of the president to biblical figures.The controversial image, posted on April 13, depicted Trump in white robes and a red sash with celestial light emanating from his hands as he healed a sick man — unmistakable Christian iconography that sparked immediate backlash, even from Trump's own supporters. Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene called it "an Antichrist spirit," while conservative journalist Megan Basham demanded he "ask for forgiveness from the American people and then from God."Marcotte wrote, "Here is what will almost certainly happen next: Since the Trump-as-Jesus picture was deleted from his Truth Social feed, MAGA influencers will promptly return to offering him over-the-top worship. They are already praising the president for taking the post down, declaring how “impressed” they are with him and characterizing his swift action as “amazing.” "(Meanwhile, his Trump-as-pope picture is still up.) While this little public relations hiccup might damper their rhetoric for a few weeks, evangelical leaders will soon return to comparing him to biblical figures and claiming he has been chosen by God."Vice President JD Vance has also created ripples of controversy during a speech given earlier this week. Vance, who recently converted to Catholicism, said, "I think it's very, very important for the pope to be careful when he talks about matters of theology. I think one of the issues here is that if you're going to opine on matters of theology, you've got to be careful. "You've got to make sure it's anchored in the truth. And that's one of the things that I try to do. And it's certainly something I would expect from the clergy, whether they're Catholic or Protestant." That led MS NOW host Joe Scarborough to launch into an extensive lecture aimed at Trump’s running mate.“What, what, what are you? A king in medieval Europe?” the former GOP lawmaker exclaimed. “Warning the pope not to talk about the Bible? That's what you just said! You know how stupid you sound, right? You know how stupid you sound when you, new to the Catholic church, are lecturing, Mr. Vice President, the pontiff on theology and telling him he should not quote the red letters?”“How utterly bizarre,” he continued. “People will look back one day and laugh when they have the safety of distance and laugh that you actually have a vice president sitting on stage warning the pope, God's representative here on earth for the Catholic church, warning the pope and what he can and cannot say about theology, that he needs to be careful.”