Less than a year and a half after his return to power, and after a mandate as bloodthirsty as it was pathetic, Donald Trump finds himself in a very difficult situation. And he is going to have a hard time getting out of it, because now it is his own camp that is turning against him. Let’s recap.
The miracle of discord
On April 12, the official account of the US president published a Christ-like montage created by Artificial Intelligence. Trump appears in the center, as a healing Christ, thus diverting sacred Christian religious iconography, with Jesus performing miracles. Trump in a tunic is healing an unconscious man with one hand, and holding a light in the other, in front of a US flag, warplanes, a soldier, fireworks, and curious figures in the sky, surrounded by light. Including a central silhouette with horns. From a religious point of view, in a country that is not secular, this image is blasphemous in addition to being megalomaniacal.
Trump has already faced backlash on social media before: in February, he had posted a video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as monkeys. Before that, he had shared a video showing him bombing a protest with warplanes loaded with fecal matter. But this time, it is his electoral base, composed of evangelicals and religious conservatives, who are outraged. Some members of the MAGA movement even refer to their former champion as “Antichrist”. Protestant journalist and shareholder Megan Basham wrote: “I don’t know if the president thought he was being funny, if he is under the influence of some substance, or what possible explanation he could have for this SCANDALOUS blasphemy. But he must immediately remove [this montage] and apologize to the American people, then to God.”
In short, in the USA, you can sell weapons to children, display Nazi symbols in the streets, and consider genocide a divine mission, but you cannot touch the image of Christ.
Unprecedented backlash
So Trump urgently deleted his image, which is unprecedented, and gave ridiculous explanations on television: “I thought it was me as a doctor. And it had to do with the Red Cross – as a volunteer for the Red Cross, an organization we support; only fake news would make up such a story.”
He had done everything to please the fundamentalist religious movements. Trump had notably created an “Office of Faith” in the White House to “strengthen the place of religion in the country”, which organized prayers around the president. This office is led by an extreme right-wing fanatic linked to fundamentalists. One in five Americans defines themselves as evangelicals, and their support is crucial in winning an election. He has now lost them.
Trump vs. Pope Leo XIV
Trump also angered Catholics the same week. He launched a violent attack against Pope Leo XIV for criticizing the war in Iran. “I don’t want a pope who thinks it’s acceptable for Iran to possess nuclear weapons,” he threatened. The pontiff responded: “I have no fear of the Trump administration and proclaim loudly and clearly the message of the Gospel – which I believe is my mission on this earth.”
Three days earlier, the Pope had declared: “Enough of the idolatry of self and money! Enough of the display of power! Enough of war! True strength is manifested in the service of life.” This had already angered Donald Trump. The US president claims he will not apologize, calling the head of the Catholic Church “very weak”. Catholics are a religious minority in the US, but losing their support could also harm the Republicans.
Loss of influence
Far-right influencers were instrumental in Donald Trump’s rise to power. Shareholders, racists, misogynists, and conspiracy theorists, they include Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly, Candace Owens, and Alex Jones. These influential figures on social media have tens of millions of followers and have been fighting digitally for Trump for years.
In recent weeks, these influencers have criticized the war with Iran, and some even question unconditional US support for Israel. On April 9, Trump responded with a harsh statement on his Truth Social network. “They have low IQs. They are stupid. They are losers who are simply trying to hang on to the Maga movement.” Besides the fact that the president of the world’s superpower ridicules himself by insulting his former online buddies like a common troll, this conflict could also harm the young supporters of Trumpism who have been indoctrinated by the online reactionary sphere.
CIA against Trump
Former CIA director John Brennan has also joined the anti-Trump front. The man who had been overseeing the imperialist missions of the USA for decades now believes that the president is going too far. “This person is obviously disturbed,” he said on the American media MS Now. “I think the 25th amendment was written with Donald Trump in mind.”
This amendment allows for the removal of a president who is no longer capable of leading. It is worth mentioning that the CIA has always worked to maintain US hegemony in the world, and does not view the diplomatic disasters of the Trump clan favorably, which have only isolated American influence in recent months.
Warning shot
Finally, Democratic senators and representatives in the House of Representatives also want to impeach Trump. After his nuclear threats against Iran, they declared Trump was “unfit” to govern. “We cannot stand idly by as Donald Trump threatens to annihilate an entire civilization,” summed up Senator Ed Markey. But such an impeachment procedure requires a simple majority vote in the House of Representatives and a two-thirds majority vote in the Senate to succeed, and both chambers of Congress are Republican-majority. It remains a warning shot.
Contested internationally, in the streets of American cities, by the political class, and within his own political camp on the eve of midterm elections, Trumpism is starting to feel the heat and may not make it to the end of the planned term.
