Is it a joke or is it serious... Trump: “Proposal for UFC president to be White House spokesperson” (Comprehensive 2nd report)

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on the 7th (local time) that he had offered the position of White House spokesperson to UFC (Mixed Martial Arts) President Dana White.

While the White House did not announce an official position on this, American media outlets assessed that it seemed unclear whether President Trump's remarks were a joke or a serious proposal.

President Trump called White a "fierce fighter and warrior" on the social media platform TruthSocial and said, "I am pleased to announce that the great Dana White has been offered the position of White House press secretary."

He then revealed that he had asked Chairman White to bring in martial arts athletes such as Islam Makhachev, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Justin Gaethje, Daniel Cormier, Amanda Nunes, and Kyla Harrison as assistants.

“We need these people to protect us from the crazy left,” Trump said, noting that some of them are not from the United States.

“White will be a spokesperson like no other,” Trump said, adding, “Dana, please take this position.”

However, Chairman White declined the offer to be the White House spokesperson, CNN reported, citing a source familiar with the matter.

Chairman White is a long-time close associate of President Trump, and they have maintained a close relationship, appearing together with President Trump whenever he watches a UFC match.

President Trump's extraordinary love for UFC is famous.

When President Trump promoted hosting a UFC match at the White House on June 14, his 80th birthday, as part of an event commemorating the 250th anniversary of American independence and founding, Chairman White played a key role in preparing for the event.

The position of White House press secretary is vacant after Katie Zacharias, who was appointed following the resignation of former press secretary Caroline Levitt, was dismissed four days later due to her false career history and controversy over her qualifications.

This day's remarks are also noteworthy in that they came right after President Trump selected Stephen Miller, his closest hard-liner, as the successor to Suzy Wiles as White House chief of staff the previous day.

Miller is a key adviser who has led the Trump administration's hard-line policies, such as deporting large-scale illegal immigrants and strengthening border controls.

Regarding his selection as chief of staff, an interpretation was raised that President Trump is trying to stick to a hard-line policy rather than modifying the Republican Party's policy stance despite its crushing defeat in the midterm elections.

In this situation, President Trump's public mention of the head of a martial arts organization as a candidate for spokesperson and his use of aggressive language toward the Democratic Party are also interpreted as showing his will to maintain a strong stance against the Democratic Party even after losing the election.

On this day, President Trump also ordered a Justice Department investigation targeting the Democratic Party, saying, "The threats the Democratic Party is making against innocent Republican donors and party members are not only unprecedented, but also completely illegal."

The New York Times pointed out, "It is unclear whether President Trump's sudden proposal to White was a joke, or a serious proposal to show his unyielding attitude after losing in the midterm elections."

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and a UFC spokesperson also did not comment on the matter, the NYT reported.