A recent Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll reveals significant backlash against President Donald Trump’s and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth’s religion-related statements. The survey found that 87% of Americans disapproved of a social media post by Trump depicting himself as Jesus, while 69% disapproved of Hegseth praying at the Pentagon for “overwhelming violence.”
This criticism was not confined to any political group. Among Trump’s 2024 voters and Republicans, 80% and 79%, respectively, viewed negatively Trump’s Jesus-themed post. More than 40% also reacted negatively to Hegseth’s prayer.
The controversy over Trump’s image intensified when he deleted the AI-generated picture following accusations of blasphemy from religious conservatives. Despite his strong support among White Christians, Trump faced criticism for his portrayal of himself as a doctor or Red Cross worker in the image.
Among White evangelical Protestants, 90% disapproved of the image, though about 70% still approved of Trump’s overall job performance. This marked a significant decline from February’s approval ratings.
Trump’s approval among White Catholic voters fell to 49% from 63%, while Catholics’ overall support for him dropped to 38%. His overall approval rating plummeted to 37%.
The poll also showed that Pope Leo XIV was viewed more favorably, with two-thirds of respondents reacting positively to his call for Americans to contact Congress for peace and reject war. Nearly six in ten reacted negatively to Trump’s false claim that the pope had said it’s OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon.
Among those familiar with Pope Leo XIV, 41% viewed him favorably while 16% unfavorably. The poll also examined reactions to another Trump social media post during negotiations with Iran, where he wrote that “a whole civilisation will die tonight, never to be brought back again.” Seventy-six percent disapproved of this statement, including 53% who reacted strongly negatively.
The Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll was conducted online from April 24-28 among 2,560 US adults nationwide. The margin of error was plus or minus 2 percentage points.