'You really don't want this smoke': Michael Steele mocks Trump over AI Jesus post, Pope feud

President Donald Trump's recent posts amid the Iran war, where he invoked religion to justify Operation Epic Fury, have drawn sharp criticism from lawmakers. Among the critics is Michael Steele, former chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC), who highlighted Trump's ongoing conflict with Pope Leo. After a public clash on Sunday, Trump escalated tensions by posting an AI-generated image of himself as Jesus Christ. Steele condemned the act, emphasizing that such behavior exemplifies "the idolatry of a president." Quoting Pope Leo XIV, Steele said, "Enough of the idolatry of self and money! Enough of flaunting power! Enough of war! True strength is revealed in the service of life."

Pope Leo's opposition to the Iran war and subsequent statements urging world peace invited strong rhetoric from the President. In a lengthy Truth Social post, Trump said that Pope Leo was "weak on crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy." "I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon. I don't want a Pope who thinks it's terrible that America attacked Venezuela, a Country that was sending massive amounts of Drugs into the United States and, even worse, emptying their prisons, including murderers, drug dealers, and killers, into our Country. And I don't want a Pope who criticizes the President of the United States because I'm doing exactly what I was elected, IN A LANDSLIDE, to do, setting Record Low Numbers in Crime, and creating the Greatest Stock Market in History," Trump worte adding that the Pope "should be thankful." 

In response to President Trump's statements, Pope Leo told Reuters that he did not "want to get into a debate with him." He added, "I don't think that the message of the Gospel is meant to be abused in the way that some people are doing." In a separate statement to the Associated Press, Leo, the first American-born Pope, said, “To put my message on the same plane as what the President has attempted to do here, I think, is not understanding what the message of the Gospel is...And I'm sorry to hear that, but I will continue on what I believe is the mission of the church in the world today."

Steele continued to mock the President's statements in a separate post on X, writing, "Dude, why don’t you sit this one out. You really don’t want this smoke." Earlier, the former Republican chair had called Trump a megalomaniac. "When a war is started by a megalomaniac who quickly becomes bored with the war he started and just wants to declare victory, this is what you get," he said on X, sharing a video of Vice President J.D. Vance talking about the U.S. failing to reach an agreement with Tehran.