From Pope to Sith Lord: Donald Trump's flights of fancy with AI
There's a warning embedded in the best sci-fi films about humans falling for artificial intelligence:
Her
,
Ex Machina
,
Blade Runner 2049.
The message is always the same—once the fantasy becomes real enough, we don't just believe it.
We fall in love with it. We follow it. We vote for it.
But for President Donald J. Trump, 2025 edition, these warnings are less cinematic parables and more campaign strategy. He is not merely a man, nor merely a meme. He has become a fully AI-enhanced brand of political mythmaking. In a world where authenticity is algorithmic and truth is curated by prompts, Trump has become both the prompt and the result. He is
Pope
,
Sith Lord
, duck rescuer, Swiftie icon—all rendered in surreal, AI-generated glory.
This isn't a White House—it's a live-action episode of Black Mirror, with the Commander-in-Chief directing his own hallucination.
Trump the Pope, Defender of Faith—and Branding
Weekend Update: Trump Shares AI Generated Image of Himself as Pope - SNL
In April 2025, shortly after
Pope Francis
's death, Trump shared an AI-generated image of himself as the Pope on Truth Social. He appeared in full papal regalia—gold-trimmed white robes, a mitre, and the usual sanctified smirk.
Trump lated said in a separate media interaction, 'I'd like to be pope.
That would be my No. 1 choice,' and praised Dolan as 'a great guy.' Cardinal Dolan later responded to the image, saying, 'I hope [Trump] didn't have anything to do with that,' and calling it 'not good.'
To critics, the image was tasteless. To supporters, it was theology. Trump wasn't mocking faith—he was manifesting his own version of it, with himself at the altar. Like the simulated afterlife in San Junipero, the reality didn't need to be authentic—just emotionally resonant.
Sith Trump and the Gospel of the Red Lightsaber
On May 4th, 2025—Star Wars Day—the official White House account shared an AI-generated image of President Trump wielding a red lightsaber, flanked by bald eagles, American flags, and a molten red sky. The image was accompanied by a caption framing Trump as the leader of a rebellion against "the Empire of bureaucracy."
But anyone remotely familiar with Star Wars lore noticed the gaffe instantly: red lightsabers aren't carried by Jedi heroes.
They're the weapon of Sith Lords—the villains. In the Star Wars universe, red is the colour of tyranny, manipulation, and the Dark Side.
That nuance, however, seems to have escaped Team Trump. For them, the red saber likely symbolised strength, vengeance, and fiery patriotism—fitting the aesthetic of a president who prefers mythic spectacle over metaphorical consistency. It was yet another reminder that in Trump's AI universe, symbolism is a tool, not a text to be studied.
Even when it misfires, it works.
For his base, it didn't matter whether Trump was cast as Anakin or Palpatine—so long as he looked ready to crush the liberal Empire. Canon was irrelevant. The vibes were right. It was Black Mirror's "15 Million Merits" with MAGA hats—where power isn't earned but simulated into existence.
Cats, Ducks, and AI Xenophobia
During the 2024 campaign trail, Trump falsely claimed that Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio were stealing and eating cats and ducks.
Local police departments found no evidence of such incidents. But the claim ignited a frenzy online—fueled by AI-generated images portraying Trump heroically rescuing frightened animals from vaguely threatening figures coded as immigrants.
These images weren't officially from the Trump campaign, but they spread rapidly through Trump-aligned social media networks and influencer accounts. The emotional charge was clear: protect animals, fear migrants.
Even after the claim was debunked, the images persisted. AI wasn't just supporting the narrative—it was creating it. It was Black Mirror's 'The Waldo Moment' reimagined—where a cartoonish digital character runs for office, and no one remembers it was supposed to be satire.
Swifties for Trump—AI Celebrities Join the Choir
In the lead-up to the 2024 election, AI-generated images began circulating on social media showing
Taylor Swift
wearing 'Swifties for Trump' T-shirts, standing beside a digitally inserted Trump.
There's no evidence Trump himself or his official campaign distributed these images. However, they gained traction within pro-Trump circles, particularly among Telegram groups and alt-right forums seeking to fabricate celebrity endorsements.
Taylor Swift has never endorsed Trump and has publicly supported Democratic candidates in the past. But that didn't stop the simulation. Because in this campaign, optics beat authenticity.
Just as in Black Mirror's 'Be Right Back,' it's not the person that matters—it's the digital replica that feels close enough to believe.
NFTs and the Infinite Trump
Trump's official embrace of AI in visual branding began earlier, in late 2022 and again in 2023, when he launched his Trump Digital Trading Cards. These NFTs featured AI-enhanced images of Trump as a cowboy, astronaut, superhero, and fighter pilot.
They were roundly mocked for anatomical oddities and amateurish design, but they sold out.
Not once, but twice.
Trump didn't just mint NFTs. He minted myth. The trading cards weren't collectibles—they were political relics for a post-truth age.
The President of Post-Reality
Trump isn't just playing with AI. He's governing with it. In a political environment where emotion beats fact and spectacle beats policy, AI offers him the ultimate control: the ability to rewrite his own image in real time.
When polls falter or scandals erupt, AI-generated content becomes a tool for distraction and mythmaking.
When narratives need inflating, digital imagery does the heavy lifting. It's not spin—it's simulation.
And Trump has become its high priest.
AI as Messiah, Myth, and Misinformation Machine
In Her, AI becomes a seductive partner. In Ex Machina, it manipulates its creators. In Black Mirror, it consumes them. In Trump's America, AI doesn't seduce or escape—it replaces the inconvenient world with a more flattering one. From duck rescues to papal cosplay, Sith battle stances to NFT saviour cards, President Trump is using AI not as a mirror—but as a megaphone. And what echoes back isn't the truth. It's a fantasy built one pixel at a time.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
12 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Immigrant rights groups sue to invalidate Trump administration's El Salvador prison deal
A coalition of immigrant rights groups on Thursday sued to invalidate the Trump administration's deal to house detainees in a notorious prison in El Salvador, saying the arrangement to move migrant detainees outside the reach of U.S. courts violates the U.S. Constitution. The lawsuit in federal court in Washington, D.C., notes that the administration has argued that those sent to El Salvador are beyond the reach of U.S. courts and no longer have access to due process rights or other U.S. constitutional guarantees. The deal, the plaintiffs allege, 'is contrary to law. And it was entered into without any legal basis.' The administration has sent hundreds of migrants to El Salvador, including some it accuses of being members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. The administration in March agreed to pay $6 million for El Salvador to house 300 migrants. President Donald Trump has said he'd like to eventually send U.S. citizen criminals to the Salvadoran prison, though that'd likely be unconstitutional. The lawsuit notes that the State Department has reported that inmates in El Salvador's prisons may be subject to 'harsh and life-threatening' conditions, torture and lack access to reliable food, water and medical care. The prisons are run by the government of El Salvador's president, Nayib Bukele, who once called himself 'the world's coolest dictator' and has posted images of detainees sent from the U.S. getting marched into his centerpiece prison, the Terrorism Confinement Center, known as CECOT. The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In one notorious case cited in the lawsuit, the Trump administration has not returned Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man it deported to El Salvador in violation of a judge's order, saying the man is no longer in its custody. That was the administration's argument when another judge ordered it to halt deportations under an 18th century wartime act — that the deportees were on a plane to El Salvador and outside the legal reach of federal judges. The suit was filed by Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the Immigrant Defenders Law Center, Immigrant Equality, the California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice and Democracy Forward, which is co-counsel in a separate lawsuit over the initial flights to El Salvador. Thursday's lawsuit says the deal violates the Administrative Procedures Act, which prevents agencies like the State Department, which reached the deal with El Salvador, from undertaking unconstitutional or otherwise illegal acts. In addition to violating the constitution, the suit notes that housing prisoners in El Salvador violates the First Step Act, a law requiring federal prisons to try to house inmates close to home. That law was signed by Trump in 2018.
Indian Express
17 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Trump threatens to terminate Musk's government contracts as two spar in public fall-out
Tensions between US President Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk reached a breaking point after a flurry of online posts from both sides. President Trump took to Truth Social, writing two posts targeting Musk. 'Elon was wearing thin, I asked him to leave, I took away his EV mandate that forced everyone to buy electric cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!' Trump wrote. He then added that the 'easiest way to save money' through his signature tax bill was to 'terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.' Meanwhile, Musk intensified his attacks on X, claiming that Trump 'is in the Epstein files,' referencing government documents related to the disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. 'That is the real reason they have not been made public,' Musk wrote. In February, Attorney General Pam Bondi had announced the release of the 'first phase' of declassified Epstein documents, though much of the information had already been public. Time to drop the really big bomb:@realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT! — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2025 Musk also launched a poll on X, asking his followers if there should be a 'new political party' representing 'the 80 percent in the middle.' The billionaire, who had often portrayed himself as a centrist despite frequent engagement with global right-wing leaders, had previously pledged $100 million to Trump-aligned groups—but had not delivered. Observers speculated he could redirect his vast resources into launching a new political project. The public feud comes after Musk last week officially left his government post, where he was tasked with rooting out excessive spending through DOGE.
Time of India
24 minutes ago
- Time of India
Trump Vs Musk: 'Very Disappointed' – Ex-White House Ally Turns Bitter Critic Online
/ Jun 06, 2025, 12:48AM IST U.S. President Donald Trump says he's "very disappointed" in Elon Musk over GOP tax bill criticism. Musk claims Trump would've lost the election without his help. Elon accuses Trump of 'ingratitude,' calls out GOP domestic agenda. Trump compares Musk to ex-staffers who "miss the glamour" after leaving. Watch
