Watch as Trump goes full Henry VIII and starts his own church purely to make raping pre-teens a religious practice and for the tax exemption.

...

You know the KKK went after Catholics almost as hard as Black people...

Right?

That the whole "a Catholic president will just listen to the pope" was just an excuse to not elect a Catholic?

That Joe Biden's memories of the good old days when Republicans wouldn't stop telling him he was "one of the good ones" they were talking about him being Catholic yet siding with evangelicals?

Like, this ain't new, it's so old this is how they were brought up, and it goes both ways.

My Catholic grandmother didn't talk to my mom, ever, because my mom was a different flavor of Christian than Catholic. MAGA boomers grew up during that schism, they 100% never saw themselves on the same side. They think of Catholicism like younger generations think of Mormonism.

What's going to fuck trump up with Abrahmic religions of all flavors, is the AI pic of him as Jesus.

Was definitely not on my “Crazies of 2026” bingo card.

You're gonna be really shocked when Muslim leaders start talking about how Jesus is coming back to save everyone then...

I was initially surprised by this too. But the more I think about it, the more expected it is.

Trump's hardcore base is mostly comprised of evangelical protestants. And they fucking hate the pope in every form (more conservative and more liberal ones alike), and Catholics in general.

His comments will energize their support, which has been slipping a bit due to the Epstein files. And as someone else said he, the hardcore base of ultra-conservative Catholics who also support Trump won't care about his latest comments, because they hate Leo too.

This really is just playing to his base. Not in a 4D chess way, but more in the form of his latest tantrum unwittingly hitting a strategic sweet spot.

Like... I am not going to say I am NOT surprised.

But it really does make sense if you look at history as a whole. Catholicism has largely always been characterized by a religious third party meddling in politics, economics, and the legal system. When they have a critical mass of Believers, they are a force to be feared. When they don't? They are a nagging voice that world leaders are expected to kiss the ring of.

In this case? Somehow the catholic church is NOT the most evil voice in the room which... is a whole level of fucked.

But England broke with the pope centuries ago. And people forget that the US was "founded" by protestants. Or that the country is basically controlled by evangelical christofacists (another flavor of protestants). Like... it is STILL a big deal that JFK was openly catholic.

So... in a lot of ways? This is one fallen empire that pissed away its soft power getting mocked by the figurehead of a falling empire that pissed away its soft power.

Did you say.. Antipope?

Now this makes sense, the original of Trump blessing John Stewart threw me.

Wow that's hilarious

I was hoping someone would make this

The Vatican does have the highest crime rate per capita in the world.*

* Because there are a few hundred inhabitants but millions of tourists each year

Thinking that the wrong dude is the Pope is the most Catholic thing ever.

I'm sure this is true for the conservative Catholics, but there are also millions of moderate and liberal Catholics who lean Dem and are most definitely anti-MAGA.

This has never happened before!

...

Except for the last 13 years!

That happens multiple times per day

Meanwhile my in-laws voted for Trump in 2016 because Biden was going to outlaw Catholicism...