A MAGA U.S. Senate hopeful got clowned on for an AI-edited photo that depicts him looking much more buff and burly than he actually is.
An image of Donald Trump-endorsed GOP Senate candidate Mike Rogers, shared on X Tuesday morning by Abby Ronson, a political operative at the Republican PR firm Convergence Media, portrayed the former Michigan congressman with musculature not dissimilar to that of a brawny comic book hero like He-Man or The Incredible Hulk.
“HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Michigan’s next Senator, @MikeRogersForMI!!!” Ronson, a former staffer of House Speaker Mike Johnson and Georgia GOP Rep. Brian Jack, wrote in the post. “LET’S GET TO WORK 💪🏻🇺🇸”
The image, which featured a “Made with AI” tag on the social media site, showed the now 63-year-old with sharply defined pecs and biceps nearly bursting out of his tightly fitting collared shirt as he waved to supporters.
Ron Filipkowski, editor-in-chief of MeidasTouch, alleged that Ronson was a Rogers campaign staffer, but Rogers aide Alyssa Brouillet confirmed that was not the case.
“lol not a campaign staffer,” Brouillet told the Daily Beast. “Mike doesn’t need AI to frame-mog his opponents.”
The absurd image quickly made the rounds on social media, with Rogers’ opponent, Democratic candidate Mallory McMorrow, commenting on it with a side-by-side comparison with the original image, which proves that Rogers is much less muscular in reality.
“This is gender affirming care,” McMorrow, 39, captioned the post.
Menswear writer Derek Guy replied to Ronson’s ridiculous image by commenting, “shirt is too baggy.”
The original image, captured by Detroit News staff photographer David Guralnick, comes from Rogers’ appearance at a Fourth of July parade in 2024.
The altered image is par for the course for the MAGA faithful under President Donald Trump, who frequently demonstrates how much he loves AI-generated photos that paint a much different picture of him than reality does.
Just this weekend, Trump, 79, went on a 52-post Truth Social spree, where he shared dozens of AI-generated images.
Among them were a picture of himself horseback riding beside George Washington next to a NASCAR race in front of the White House, and another showing him in battle armor commanding fighter jets and naval vessels with the caption, “You’re getting discombobulated.”
Back in April, Trump also stunned the world with a ludicrous AI-generated image depicting himself as Jesus Christ, though he defended his blasphemy by saying he thought the image was of a “doctor.”
