Sarah Huckabee Sanders says ESPN host's criticism of Trump should be 'a fireable offense'

Sarah Huckabee Sanders wants ESPN host fired — (Image credit: Screenshot/Twitter/CNN)

On Monday, Jamele Hill, an anchor of ESPN's SportsCenter, tweeted that President Trump "is a white supremacist who has largely surrounded himself w/ other white supremacists," among other criticisms of the president, and Washington Post reporter David Nakamura asked White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders about the tweets on Wednesday afternoon. Sanders said she is not sure if Trump was aware of the tweets, "but I think that's one of the more outrageous comments that anyone could make, and certainly something that I think is a fireable offense by ESPN."

On Tuesday, before suggesting that the Justice Department look into prosecuting former FBI Director James Comey for sharing his notes of meetings with Trump, Sanders had said that recommending the prosecution of a former FBI director is not the president's job. Pretty clearly, using the White House podium to recommend a private company fire somebody for criticizing the president is not the press secretary's job.

In a statement, Hill said she was sorry that her public comments about Trump "painted ESPN in an unfair light," and ESPN said it had accepted her apology. Her comments landed amid a growing conservative critique of ESPN's perceived shift into politics.

Article continues below

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.