NFL Legend Herschel Walker Just Sent a Defensive Message About Donald Trump and Racism
Herschel Walker certainly has never been shy about sharing his opinions about Donald Trump. The former NFL star has been friends with the current U.S. president well before he got voted into office. And with election season in full swing, the conversation surrounding Trump and racism has intensified. However, Walker just sent a defensive message about his longtime friend while addressing the narrative that the president is a racist.
Herschel Walker has a long relationship with Donald Trump
Herschel Walker and Donald Trump may seem like an odd pairing, but the two recognizable public figures have actually known each other for quite some. In fact, their relationship dates all the way back to the early 1980s.
Following a dominant career at the University of Georgia, Walker took his talents to the USFL and signed with the New Jersey Generals. Trump purchased the team from J. Walter Duncan after the 1983 season.
Though Walker only played two more seasons in the USFL, his relationship with his team’s new owner would last well beyond his playing days. In recent years, the NFL legend has publicly backed Trump, including during his presidential campaign back in 2016. That year, during an appearance on NBC Sports Radio, Walker weighed in on whether his longtime friend is a racist.
“I’ve seen [Trump] around people, I don’t know where he says those outlandish, crazy things,” Walker said. “And people say that he’s racist. But I’ve never seen anything that [made me] consider Donald is a racist. Because of the things — he’s said those outlandish things about building a wall — that doesn’t mean you’re racist when you say things like that.”
The NFL legend recently gave a ringing endorsement of the president
Fast forward to 2020 and Herschel Walker has once again stood behind Donald Trump during an election year. Having already defended his friend before, Walker delivered a powerful endorsement of Trump at the Republican National Convention in late August.
The former football star spoke about several topics and tried to set the record straight about a person he has known for nearly four decades.
“I don’t think people really know Donald Trump. I think they look at Donald Trump from a tweet or look at from what he says, and they’re not looking at what he does,” Walker told host Laura Ingraham. “Donald Trump has done more in three years than almost most presidents have done in eight, and what’s so special about him is he cares about people and that’s what I wanted people to do.”
In addition, Walker denounced any notion that the president harbors racist views.
“I take it as a personal insult that people think I would have a 37-year friendship with a racist,” he explained. “Growing up in the Deep South I’ve seen racism up close. I know what it is, and it isn’t Donald Trump.”
Walker just sent a defensive message about Trump and racism
A little over a month after Herschel Walker gave a powerful endorsement of Donald Trump at the RNC, the NFL legend once again went to the defense of his friend of nearly 40 years. On Wednesday, the 58-year-old appeared on Fox News to tackle a topic that generates strong reactions: the president and racism.
And once again, Walker sent a clear message about his views on Trump and the narrative that he is a racist.
“When people start calling the president of the United States a racist, a man that I’ve known for 37 years, I’m going to get involved,” Walker said. “He’s not a racist.”
Walker also highlighted how he thought debate moderator Chris Wallace’s insistence on Trump denouncing white supremacy was a “strange thing to ask” given that he has “seen him denounce that many times.”
Ultimately, Herschel Walker left no doubt about his view on the president and racism.
“I can tell you right now: Donald Trump is not a racist, and I think that’s what people need to know,” he said. “And judge him on the things that he’s done, not what people tell you he’s done.”
Like Sportscasting on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter @sportscasting19.
