Johnny Damon still remembers the first time he met Donald Trump. But equally, Damon remembers How some people have treated him because of his friendship with Trump.
“Unfortunately, whenever you say you are friends Donald TrumpWe have a lot of people who can’t understand it,” Damon told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview.
The former MLB star met Trump during his time with the New York Yankees, and reached out to him directly through the organization. After Damon left the Boston Red Sox for the Yankees in December 2005, Trump, then a New York City businessman and reality TV star, invited the baseball star to play golf at Mar-a-Lago. He was joined in green by former New York Mets captain David Wright.
And when Trump learned that Damon was coming to New York to play for the Yankees, a team with whom Trump had been well-connected over the years, he asked Damon to stay in one of his buildings. But Damon had already moved into a space in the Bloomberg Building.
Ten years later, Trump would take revenge on Damon for not buying a space in his building. In 2015, Damon appeared on the seventh season of “Celebrity Apprentice”, where Trump fired Damon in the sixth episode for writing a poor product jingle.
But none of this stopped the two from becoming close friends. For Damon, that friendship turned into staunch political support. This was a level of support at which Damon had to be prepared to defend himself.
“We’ve been really good friends, and I’m glad he’s back in the office and I’m glad we have someone who will be there, someone who will answer questions, someone who will work to get America back. Make it great,” Damon said.
“Unfortunately, in this last administration, we can’t see anything positive he’s done, and hopefully he won’t get any repercussions for what Donald Trump is doing as he has already done to President Biden during his four More work has been done than has been done in years. And Trump isn’t even in office yet. So I’m very, very happy that my friend is back in the office.”
Damon knows about the backlash to Trump because he’s been a victim of it, too.
Damon famously endorsed Trump in 2016, and even spoke at one of his rallies in Orlando in November, sparking a backlash from left-leaning baseball fans on social media at the time.
“When he sold his soul to the devil (Go Socks) I rejected him. Is there any way to double-decline him? a disgruntled Boston Red Sox fan wrote on X (then known as Twitter) in 2016 in response to footage of Damon at the rally.
Another user insulted Damon’s intelligence, writing, “Stupid is as stupid as it gets. In response to the 2016 footage, no one said he was smart.
But after Trump won in 2016, Damon’s loyalty amid the protests gave him the opportunity to begin a career in politics.
In December 2020, Trump appointed Damon to serve on the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition. Damon joins fellow Yankees World Series champion Mariano Rivera, former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer, UFC fighter Colby Covington and NFL Hall of Famer Troy Vincent.
The appointment inspired Damon to consider a future in politics, but this ended after a clash with the police.
In February 2021, Damon was arrested in Florida for DUI. Leaked bodycam footage of his arrest shows an intoxicated Damon claiming he is being targeted because he supports Trump. This came exactly a month after January 6.
“Hey brother, I am a good boy. I know people are trying to target me because I’m a Trump supporter,” Damon told a police officer in the video. The officer said that Damon’s support for Trump had nothing to do with the arrest, to which Damon responded, “Yes… it does.”
Damon, who has previously faced criticism for supporting Trump, told Fox News Digital that he drank three beers before getting into the car and had his mind on politics all night.
“I was getting ready to run for politics, and thinking seriously about it, and then I got pulled over,” Damon said, adding that he tested positive for alcohol in the police officer’s breathalyzer test. Disagree with what was said about the level.
“Unfortunately, people want to go after great citizens, and at the end of the day I’ll just be who I am.”
Police reported that Damon’s blood alcohol content was 0.30% – three times the legal limit in Florida. He was also charged with resisting arrest without violence. His wife, Michelle Mangan-Damon, was charged with assault on a law-enforcement officer and resisting arrest with violence.
Damon admits that he made a “stupid” decision to drink and drive that night. But she believes that at this point in her life she has overcome this by doing charity work and is now committed to raising her children.
Still, Damon’s support and affection for Trump isn’t going anywhere, no matter anyone’s reaction to it.
“I will continue to be friends with him,” Damon said. “And I support my friends through thick and thin, through thick and thin, so that’s who I am and will always be who I am.”
(TagstoTranslate)MLB(T)Sports(T)Politics(T)Donald Trump(T)Johnny Damon(T)New York Yankees
