EXCLUSIVE: Johnny Damon still remembers the first time he met Donald Trump. But equally, Damon remembers how certain people treated him because he was friends with Trump.
“Unfortunately, when I say I'm friends with Donald Trump, a lot of people don't get it,” Damon told FOX News Digital in an exclusive interview.
The former MLB star met Trump during his time with the New York Yankees and met him directly through the organization. After Damon was traded to the Yankees from the Boston Red Sox in December 2005, Trump, then a New York City businessman and reality TV star, invited Damon to golf at Mar-a-Lago. Joining him on the green was former New York Mets captain David Wright.
President Trump then learns that Damon is coming to New York to play for the Yankees, a team that President Trump has had deep ties to over the years, and asks Damon to move into one of his buildings. I pitched him to do it. However, Damon had already moved into a corner of the Bloomberg Building.
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Johnny Damon and Donald Trump attend the “Celebrity Apprentice'' red carpet event at Trump Tower on February 3, 2015 in New York City. (D. Dipaspil/Film Magic)
Ten years later, Trump may have gotten revenge on Damon for not buying the site for his building. In 2015, Damon appeared on the seventh season of “Celebrity Apprentice,'' but President Trump fired him in the sixth episode for writing a poor product jingle.
However, this did not prevent the two from becoming close friends. For Damon, that friendship blossomed into solid political support. It was a level of support that Damon needed to be prepared to protect himself from.
“We've been really good friends. I'm glad he's back as president. And I'm glad we have someone who's going to be out there and answer questions and work hard to solve problems.” “I think, 'Make America Great Again,'” Damon said.
“Unfortunately, with this last administration, I don't see anything positive about what they've done. And I hope Donald Trump doesn't get any backlash for what he's doing. “Because he's already done more than President Biden has done in four years.'' And Trump isn't even in office right now, so he's very, very happy to have his friend back in office. are. ”
Damon knows about the backlash against Trump, because he's been on the receiving end of it too.
Damon famously supported Trump in 2016 and even spoke at one of his rallies in Orlando in November of that year, sparking a backlash from left-wing baseball fans on social media at the time.
“I disowned him when he sold his soul to the devil (GoSox). Is there a way to disown him double?” one disgruntled Boston Red Sox fan wrote. In 2016, I wrote a response to footage of Damon at a rally on X (then known as Twitter).
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Johnny Damon and Bubba Crosby attend the Yankees Universe Day Celebration at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center on May 16, 2006 in New York City. (Duffy-Marie Arnaud/Wire Image)
Another user insulted Damon's intelligence, writing in response to the 2016 video: “Idiots are idiots. No one said he was smart.”
But when Trump won in 2016, Damon's loyalty despite the backlash paid off, giving him a chance to launch a political career.
In December 2020, President Trump appointed Damon to the President's Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition. Damon joins fellow Yankees World Series champion Mariano Rivera, former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer, UFC fighter Colby Covington and NFL Hall of Famer Troy Vincent.
This appointment led Damon to consider a future in politics, but that ended in a run-in with the police.
In February 2021, Damon was arrested for drunk driving in Florida. Leaked body camera footage from his arrest showed an inebriated Damon claiming he was being targeted because of his support for Trump. It was just one month after January 6th.
“Hey, brother, I'm a good guy. I know people are trying to target me because I'm a Trump supporter,” Damon told the officer in the video. The officer said Damon's support for Trump had nothing to do with the arrest, but Damon responded, “Yeah… it does.”
Damon, who has had to deal with backlash for supporting Trump in the past, told Fox News Digital that he drank three beers before getting into his car and was thinking about politics all night. spoke.
“I was preparing to run for political office and was seriously considering it, but they stopped me,'' Damon said, adding that he agreed with the police's breathalyzer test, which showed his blood alcohol level. He added that he couldn't.
“Unfortunately, people want to follow the great nationals. At the end of the day, I will continue to be who I am.”
According to police reports, Damon's blood alcohol level was 0.30 percent, more than three times the legal limit in Florida. He was also charged with resisting arrest without violence. His wife, Michelle Mangan Damon, was charged with assault on a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest with violence.
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Former President Trump and Johnny Damon attend the LIV Golf Invitational Series event at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey on August 10, 2023. (Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images)
Damon admitted he made the “stupid” decision to drive after drinking that night. However, at this point in his life, he believes he has overcome this problem by doing charity work and is now focused on raising his children.
Still, regardless of anyone's reaction to it, Damon's support and goodwill for Trump is not going anywhere.
“He and I will continue to be friends,” Damon said. “And I support my friends in good times and bad. That's who I am and will continue to be who I am.”
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