Stephen A. Smith apologizes for claiming Trump is relatable

Stephen A. Smith is backtracking on comments he made last week on Fox News through which he called Donald Trump a “kin” to the Black community resulting from his ongoing criminal trial.

Famous sports commentator posted on his YouTube canal on Monday, April 22, to formally apologize to the Black community for speaking on their behalf during last week’s Sean Hannity show. Smith gave a “final” explanation of what he desired to say and the way his message was misinterpreted within the media.

“I’m fully aware that there was a whole lot of discuss me in recent days. He also paraded on social media following comments I made last week to Hannity on Fox News… Loads of people in Black America seem very indignant with me right away,” he said before mentioning the people he offended, including family, friends, and even the NAACP.

“Loads of people were offended when my words were interpreted as associating support for Trump from the black community with all of the legal problems he faces. I sincerely apologize for this. I state here for the record that I used to be taken out of context.

Smith noted how offended he felt by the misinterpretation of his words, while taking responsibility for what he said and the way upsetting it was to the people he represented. He then cited Trump’s “history of problems” that might justify black people not supporting his campaign.

“We will never forget when Trump claimed that Obama, the country’s first black president, wasn’t even qualified to hold office because he was born in Kenya,” Smith said.

Turning to Trump’s current polling success for the 2024 presidential election, Smith pointed to headlines from major media publications which can be reporting stories highlighting Trump’s growing support amongst communities of color.

“I’m reading. I’ve been listening and I can see the dynamic changing,” Smith said of his comments to Fox News. “Wherever I am going, no matter my subjectivity in what I feel, it’s going to still be based on facts presented within the stratosphere. But it’s never it is done with malice in its heart, and it is definitely never intended to attack or harm the Black community, my community… Just because my intentions were harmless does not imply my words will hurt any less, and I do know that.

His message got here days after he met with Sean Hannity and appeared to attribute Trump’s growing support amongst black voters to his ongoing criminal trial for alleged voter fraud and withholding money.

“While people can have felt disgusted by Donald Trump’s statement from a couple of weeks ago where he talked about how black people hear that black people find him relatable due to what he’s going through, it’s just like what black Americans have undergone, he wasn’t lying, he was telling the reality,” Smith told Hannity.

The NAACP wasted no time in calling out the “First Take” host for seemingly defending Trump’s statements and reports that he is “relatable” to black people.