After Stephen A. Smith defended Donald Trump for comparing himself to the plight of Black Americans, Ryan Clark explained why he disagrees with his ESPN colleague.
In February, Trump boasted about his criminal indictments, claiming those legal issues are attracting the support of Black voters. “Because they have been hurt so badly and discriminated against,” Trump said. “And they actually viewed me as– I’m being discriminated against. It’s been pretty amazing.”
Last week, Smith made one of his many appearances with Sean Hannity on Fox News. And upon being asked about Trump’s newfound support from Black Americans, Smith defended the former president’s rationale for those gains. “As much as people may have been abhorred by Donald Trump’s statement weeks ago talking about how Black folks, he’s hearing that Black folks find him relatable because of what he is going through is similar to what Black Americans have gone through, he wasn’t lying! He was telling the truth,” Smith declared.
Smith has since apologized, noting friends, loved ones, colleagues and contemporaries were “pissed” at him, although he simultaneously blamed the controversy on having his words misconstrued and taken out of context. However, Ryan Clark is one colleague who heard and disagreed with Smith’s Trump comments.
“I respect Stephen A. and the platform that he’s built, but I respectively disagree with him here,” Clark said on The Pivot Podcast. “First off, let’s talk about the simple statement that Black people can relate to former president Donald Trump based on discrimination by the judicial system. He’s not being discriminated against. What Donald Trump did was make bad decisions. And because of those bad decisions, he’s now been investigated; he’s now been accused, alleged, and then now prosecuted.
“The one thing that Black people can’t relate to is having these run-ins with the law and being the President of the United States of America. We couldn’t be the president of the 4-H club if we had this many run-ins with the law. We couldn’t be the president of our own HOA. Also, when you agree with this, you’re allowing him to break us down to the lowest common denominator.”
“As the support seems to grow for him in certain Black communities, we have to be smart about why that support is growing,” Clark continued. “And we can’t attribute, with our acknowledgments or with our agreements, that the lowest common denominator of us is that we all relate and have an affinity for those who break the law. Because that’s an untruth.”
Trump gaining the support of Black voters as the 2024 presidential election approaches is factual. Donald Trump, Sean Hannity, Stephen A. Smith, or anyone else citing that fact was never the controversy. The controversy was defending Trump, attributing the support to racial stereotypes. And as Clark notes, “we have to be smart about why that support is growing.”
About Brandon Contes
Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com