White House terms Hill tweets ‘fireable’
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Wednesday that sports anchor Jemele Hill could justifiably be fired from ESPN for tweets calling President Trump a “white supremacist” and “a bigot.”
“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,” Sanders said.
Sanders said she was not sure whether the president was aware of Hill’s comments.
On Monday night, in a series of exchanges with other Twitter users, Hill said, “Donald Trump is a white supremacist who has largely surrounded himself w/ other white supremacists.”
Hill, an African American cohost of the 6 p.m. broadcast of “SportsCenter,” also added that “Trump is the most ignorant, offensive president of my lifetime. His rise is a direct result of white supremacy. Period.”
In another tweet, she said, “Donald Trump is a bigot,” and went on to criticize his supporters, adding, “The height of white privilege is being able to ignore his white supremacy, because it’s of no threat to you. Well, it’s a threat to me.”
ESPN distanced itself from Hill’s tweets on Tuesday.
“The comments on Twitter from Jemele Hill regarding the president do not represent the position of ESPN,” the network tweeted from its public relations department’s account. “We have addressed this with Jemele and she recognizes her actions were inappropriate.”
Hill tweeted a statement Wednesday night, saying: “My comments on Twitter expressed my personal beliefs. My regret is that my comments and the public way I made them painted ESPN in an unfair light. My respect for the company and my colleagues remains unconditional.”
While many Twitter users called for Hill to be fired, unemployed NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick expressed his support, tweeting, “We are with you @jemelehill.”
Jones’ victory to a no contest. Jones tested positive for a banned performance-enhancing substance stemming from an incompetition sample collected after Jones’ weigh-in the day before the bout.
Jason Day said he has parted ways with Colin Swatton for at least the rest of the year, though he will keep him as the only coach he has ever had. It was the third split this year involving top players and longtime caddies.
One of Mikaela Shiffrin’s expected main rivals for the Pyeongchang Olympic slalom title has injured her right knee. Veronika Velez Zuzulova has posted a photo on her Facebook page of herself using crutches to walk and says she has returned to Slovakia. The International Ski Federation says Velez Zuzulova suffered a suspected ligament tear training in Argentina. She was second to Shiffrin in the World Cup slalom standings last season.
Sacramento Kings forward Zach Randolph was sentenced to community service after being charged with marijuana possession and resisting arrest following an incident last month in Watts, prosecutors said. Randolph entered a no-contest plea during a court appearance and was sentenced to 150 hours of community service, said Frank Mateljan, a spokesman for the L.A. city attorney’s office.
Serena Williams confirmed on social media that she gave birth to a baby girl named Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. Williams said the baby was born Sept. 1 and weighed 6 pounds, 14 ounces.