Riley Gaines declares 'I love the president' after Trump brushes off her Jesus photo criticism

WASHINGTON, DC: Conservative firebrand Riley Gaines made it clear on Monday, April 13, that she’s still firmly in Donald Trump’s camp, despite earlier blasting a now-deleted photo that depicted the president as Jesus Christ.

Gaines, a 12-time NCAA All-American swimmer turned political commentator and host of 'The Riley Gaines Show', took to X (formerly Twitter) to smooth things over after Trump said he doesn't "listen" to her.

“I love the President and I’m so grateful he’s in the Oval Office. Of course, I’ll continue to support him and the America First agenda,” Gaines posted. “At the end of the day, I do nothing for the approval of man. Our purpose on this earth is to glorify Him in all we do. The truth social post missed the mark. It’s now deleted. Amazing!”

“We’re imperfect people. I know I am. I don’t get my feelings hurt easy and I know with the President it’s really not personal. I want to spend eternity in a real place called Heaven. I’d love for Trump to be there too,” she added. 

Gaines added she would “keep doing [her] part by speaking truth,” and do her “best to lead others to Christ.” 

The AI-generated Jesus post that sparked it all

Hours earlier, Gaines had a very different tone after Trump shared an AI-generated image on Truth Social that appeared to depict him as Jesus.

“Why? Seriously, I cannot understand why he’d post this,” she wrote. “Is he looking for a response? Does he actually think this? Either way, two things are true. 1) a little humility would serve him well 2) God shall not be mocked.”

Trump eventually pulled it down, later explaining his decision to CBS News.

“Normally I don’t like doing that,” Trump said, “but I didn’t want to have anybody be confused.”

“People were confused,” he added.

The president also offered his own interpretation of the now-viral image, which showed him in flowing red and white robes, hand raised over a hospital patient in a beam of light.

“You had the Red Cross right there, you had, you know, medical people surrounding me, and I was like the doctor, you know, as a little fun playing the doctor and making people better,” he said. “So that’s what it was viewed as.”

Asked about Gaines’ criticism, Trump brushed it off.

“I didn’t listen to Riley Gaines. I’m not a big fan of Riley, actually,” he said. 

Her mea culpa came shortly after.

From a longstanding alliance to public friction

The back-and-forth between Trump and Gaines marked an unmistakable rift in what had always been a friendly alliance.

Back in February 2025, Trump welcomed Gaines to the White House for the signing of an executive order on women’s sports. At the time, he praised her as a “brave swimmer” and credited her for being at the “forefront” of a movement that became central to his 2024 campaign.

Gaines has been a vocal supporter of the president, even speaking at several Republican rallies during Trump’s run-up to his November 2024 victory.