Donald Trump stirred the 2028 pot again this week, saying he would “love to see” ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith make a bid for the White House.
The president made the comment after calling in to a NewsNation town hall on April 30 during which participants asked him a myriad of questions about his first 100 days back in office.
“I love watching him. He’s got great entertainment skills, which is very important. People watch him,” Trump told the panelists, which included Smith. “I’ve been pretty good at picking people and picking candidates, and I will tell you, I’d love to see him run.”
That Trump underscored the sports analyst’s popularity and ability to generate buzz is one of the reasons 57-year-old Smith is being trotted out as a possible contender.
Democrats are facing a deluge of criticism from their base and are still in the midst of overhauling their messaging to combat Trump 2.0, particularly on finding ways to better connect with young male voters, who are skewing more conservative than their female counterparts.
Smith has raked in millions of followers across various media platforms over the years for his outspoken and sometimes controversial “hot take” style of debate, which Trump allies have said would be formidable in a campaign.
But those same qualities have generated skepticism among other political observers, who argue picking another celebrity – Trump hosted NBC’s “The Apprentice” for 14 seasons – would be a mistake.
“Calm down, Stephen A.,” NBA basketball great Charles Barkley said in an April 15 interview. “Stephen A. is one of my friends, but come on, man, stop it.”
Earlier this month, however, Smith said he was “officially leaving all doors open” after he previously rejected the idea of running for president. Polling shows the bombastic sports broadcaster would have a long way to go to win over voters, however.
Data For Progress, a Washington, D.C.-based progressive think tank, showed Smith had the lowest net favorability among several other likely contenders, such as former President Joe Biden’s Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Donald Trump would ‘love to see’ Stephen A. Smith run for president
