US President: Martial arts boss meets Trump: Will he be White House spokesman?

How seriously should Trump's offer to Dana White be taken? The UFC boss is considered an unusual candidate for the spokesman position. A meeting between the two in Washington on Monday could bring clarity.

London/Washington. Donald Trump's offer to make a martial arts entrepreneur the new spokesman for the White House has caused a lot of guesswork: UFC boss Dana White has now announced that he will meet the US President in Washington on Monday. “I’m flying to Washington, D.C. right now,” White said at a news conference in London on Saturday. "We have a meeting on Monday. I'm sure I'll have more to say after that."

White wasn't more specific. He repeated the sentence about the upcoming appointment several times during the press conference, without any enthusiasm being expressed. However, he confirmed speculation that the two would meet in the Oval Office at the beginning of the week.

Can this be serious?

With a post on his online platform Truth Social, Trump introduced White as the new press spokesman over the weekend. “Dana, please accept the job,” the president wrote. Whether this was a serious offer or a joke remained unclear at first. There was speculation as to whether the offer was part of a campaign against the Democratic Party, which clearly defeated Trump's Republicans in the general election.

The Washington Post, citing an unnamed White House official, reported that the offer was just a joke. White would be an “extremely unusual choice” for the post of press secretary, the newspaper continues. The office is one of the most highly regarded positions in the White House. CNN previously reported, citing a person with knowledge of the matter, that White had rejected the "unorthodox idea."

Trump and White have a long-standing friendship

White is considered a long-time friend of Trump and also supported him in the election campaign. According to US media, the head of the professional martial arts league Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is 57 years old and, according to them, has turned the association into a billion-dollar company. Trump himself is a regular guest at the UFC's often bloody fight nights. On Trump's 80th birthday, fighters competed against each other in a cage on the White House lawn. This caused a lot of criticism at the time.

The speaker's position in the White House has been vacant for weeks. Katie Zacharia, who was appointed in October, left the post after just a few days. She only gave a short press conference in which she appeared uncertain.