US Election: Donald Trump's embarrassing Ronda Rousey gaffe
Details of an embarrassing gaffe by the Trump administration have emerged as the US election result goes down to the wire.
Politico recently revealed how the President’s administration tried to recruit a plethora of global sporting superstars for a $300 million coronavirus ad campaign.
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The taxpayer-funded campaign was reportedly designed to “defeat despair” about COVID-19, but was pulled before voting for the election started.
Ronda Rousey is a UFC icon who turned her career path toward WWE a few years ago.
She’s a well-known superstar with global appeal, or at least interest, hence why the Trump administration wanted her for the campaign.
The only problem was the government didn’t do its homework properly and got her staged WWE antics mixed up with real-life events.
Rousey was one of the 274 celebrities vetted to be part of a series of public service announcements by the Department of Health and Human Services to educate people about the pandemic.
The Donald Trump administration’s “Helping the President will Help the Country” campaign was eventually nixed.
None of the athletes had accepted by the time it was pulled.
In reporting about the efforts, Politico published the “PSA Celebrity Tracker” acquired by the House Oversight Committee, which is currently investigating the $300 million taxpayer-funded effort.
The tracker gives the celebrity’s name, status for their inclusion, demographic targeted and additional notes.
The notes focus on the person’s political leanings and personal history, including arrests.
Mike Ditka, Conor McGregor, Mariano Rivera, Tito Ortiz, Corey LaJoie, Shaun White, David Beckham, Lewis Hamilton and Serena Williams were all listed as possible celebrities for the PSAs.
Trump’s embarrassing Ronda Rousey gaffe
The notes about Rousey read: “Publicly supported Democratic Party candidate Bernie Sanders for 2016 election.
“Anti-feminist view at times. Arrested during WWE event in 2019.”
The former UFC bantamweight champion was indeed arrested at the event, but it was a staged exit.
Rousey, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair brawled at the end of a match. Security personnel entered the ring and were taken down by the wrestlers.
Men and women dressed as police officers then entered the ring, handcuffed the trio and attempted to get them in squad cards in the garage.
Rousey and Lynch were put in the same vehicle and Rousey quite easily kicked through the back window of the squad car.
She then drove her car into the car in front of her. No extra officers were called in. That none of those antics raised questions about the plausibility of an actual arrest is concerning.
In true WWE fashion, Rousey spoke about the arrest as if it was real life on her YouTube channel.
“What was on my mind was these cops weren’t doing anything to protect me,” she said in 2019.
“I was f------ going along with them cuffing me. As soon as they put the cuffs on me, and went ‘you’re arrested’ I was like, ‘fine I’m arrested.’
“Then Becky comes over and clocks me while I’m cuffed and none of them do anything about it and then it was like ‘come and take me out’ and I’m like ‘OK officers, you’re coming to take me out.’”
Unfortunately it’s not the first time Trump has been tricked by WWE, calling Vince McMahon in 2007 to see if he was OK after the boss staged his limo exploding.
with Cassandra Negley - Yahoo Sports
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