The key facts
- Donald Trump offered Dana White the post of White House press secretary right during a briefing
- White refused, citing his unwillingness to get into politics
- Trump later explained that the offer was a joke and that he had not planned to bring MMA fighters into his administration
A refusal right in the White House
US President Donald Trump offered Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) head Dana White the post of White House press secretary — and was turned down right during an unscheduled briefing in Washington, reports Life.ru. Trump unexpectedly appeared in the press conference room together with the UFC head and asked him to answer questions from journalists. At the end of the meeting, the president asked whether his longtime friend would agree to lead the press service of the US administration.
“I don’t want to get into politics”
“Thank you for the offer, sir. But I don’t want to get into politics,” White replied, according to Life.ru. Trump met the refusal with a joke, saying he was shocked by what he heard, after which he said goodbye to the journalists and ended the briefing.
Trump called the offer a joke
Later, Donald Trump clarified that the idea of appointing the UFC head as White House press secretary had been a joke. He also specified that he had not planned to bring well-known MMA fighters into his administration. Thus, White’s public refusal and the president’s subsequent explanation close the episode: no actual personnel appointment followed it.
