Trump gushes over disgraced TV presenter fired for comments about threesome with female co-star
President calls Jeremy Roenick a 'friend' at campaign rally in Phoenix
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump praised a former hockey star and disgraced NBC contributor who was fired from his role after appearing on a podcast and discussing having a threesome with his co-worker.
At a rally in Phoenix, Arizona, the president called Jeremy Roenick a "friend" who will "beat you physically" in golf. Mr Roenick was attending the rally.
"He doesn't care", he said. "He was the toughest hockey player. He was one of those guys who could beat you one way, and if he couldn't, he'd just beat them up."
The crowd cheered when the president mentioned Mr Roenick, who played with the Phoenix Coyotes during his 20-year career in the National Hockey League.
"Thank you, Jeremy", Mr Trump said. "He's a winner."
Mr Roenick was suspended then fired after a 19 December appearance on Barstool's "Spittin' Chiclets" podcast, on which he discussed the possibility of a threesome with his wife and now-former co-worker Kathryn Tappen.
On the podcast, he shared a story about how he attracted attention while visiting Portugal with his wife and co-worker: "I play it off like, you know, we're going to bed together every night, the three of us. Now, if it really came to fruition, that would really be good, but it's never going to happen."
He also said he would consider having sex with a former teammate: "He is so beautiful. I'd have to think about it if he asked me."
Following his suspension, he apologised on social media for his "insensitive comments" and said he "never meant to offend anyone".
"I definitely went too far and for that I deeply regret it", he said.
One month later, he said of his firing: "What a joke!"
In a video on social media, he said he was "disappointed and angry" that he wasn't invited back to NBC.
He later appeared to back away from his apology, blaming "the culture" for the consequences of his remarks. He told TMZ that he has to "be a little bit more aware of the culture that we're in right now, the things you can say, whether it's public or whether it's in a podcast that you're very comfortable telling stories".
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments