Donald Trump has been public enemy number one in the media ever since he announced he was running for President as a Republican.
Even sports journalists have been fiercely anti-Trump.
But one ESPN host revealed something about Trump that infuriated Democrats.
First Take host Stephen A. Smith often panders to the “woke” mob on issues of race, but he recently bucked that trend in a major way.
While speaking at an event hosted by the left-leaning media outlet Semafor, Smith pushed back against the narrative that Donald Trump is racist.
Smith told the crowd, “I knew Trump before he ran for the presidency. I thoroughly enjoyed talking to him. He was a huge sports fan. He used to throw a lot of events at — you know — at his casinos and stuff like that, and I genuinely liked him. I didn’t know who this guy was running for president. I think he’s changed, but I will tell you this: I think when people call him racist and stuff like that, I’ve never thought of Trump that way. He’s not against black people. He’s against all things not named Trump. There’s a difference.”
.@stephenasmith says he no longer talks to Trump: “I think he’s changed, but I will tell you this: I think when people call him racist and stuff like that, I’ve never thought of Trump that way. He’s not against black people, he’s against all things not named Trump.” pic.twitter.com/oFcOra6zkL
— Semafor (@semafor) April 10, 2023
Trump had been a New York Democrat for the majority of his life and routinely hobnobbed with black celebrities.
But the left must smear every Republican candidate as racist no matter what.
Smith, who occasionally appears on Fox News with Sean Hannity, has expressed counter-narrative views in the past.
In 2015, he suggested black people vote Republican at least once so Democrats cannot take their vote for granted.
“What I dream is that for one election, just one, every black person in America vote Republican….Black folks in America are telling one party, ‘We don’t give a damn about you.’ They’re telling the other party, ‘You’ve got our vote.’ Therefore, you have labeled yourself ‘disenfranchised’ because one party knows they’ve got you under their thumb. The other party knows they’ll never get you and nobody comes to address your interest,” Smith had said.
Democrats were horrified by Smith’s words.
They rely on getting at least 85% of the black vote.
If that percentage ever fell to 75%, Democrats would be in electoral freefall.
Democrats have to ensure they don’t lose ground with black voters by condemning all Republicans as racist, but that spell may be slowly wearing off considering that in 2020 Trump got the highest GOP percentage of non-white votes since 1960.
It’s not a shock that political journalists lean heavily to the left, but most would not guess sports journalists to be even more left-wing.
In 2016, sports reporters voted for Hillary Clinton at a higher rate than political reporters.
Smith’s own network has been emblematic of that trend.
ESPN purged many outspoken conservatives from its ranks, including people like World Series MVP Curt Schilling and Hall of Fame NFL coach Mike Ditka.
Smith is making things awkward for himself at his own network.