Donald Trump calls ex-ESPN host Sage Steele the wrong name in awkward rally gaffe
Donald Trump’s boasts about his cognitive skills seemingly backfired during his own town hall event on Sunday when he made an awkward mistake about former ESPN host Sage Steele.
Steele, who left ESPN last year after settling a lawsuit with the network, was scheduled to moderate the event in Lancaster, Pennsylvania before the former president heads to the Pittsburgh Steelers game.
However, the Republican candidate appeared to confuse the former SportsCenter host with someone else as he called her the wrong name.
“Let’s have some fun, Paige,” Trump said immediately as his live town hall was about to begin. The Harris campaign immediately released the clip.
Trump had another gaffe when he claimed he heard someone say St. Louis Cardinals great Stan Musial was in the audience.
Donald Trump called town hall moderator and former ESPN host Sage Steele the wrong name
Steele moderated the former president’s town hall event in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on Sunday
Musial died more than a decade ago, and it was Pennsylvania Rep. Dan Meuser who was referenced. Trump brought Meuser on stage after clarifying the situation.
Steele brushed off the hiccups and failed to acknowledge the 78-year-old’s mistake before beginning her questioning with a “Here we go!”
During the rally-style town hall, Trump, who has repeatedly attacked the IQ of his opponent Kamala Harris, pointedly vouched for his own cognitive ability.
“I don’t have any cognitive problems – she might have a cognitive problem. But there is no cognitive problem,” Trump told Steele, who asked him friendly questions at a town hall in central Pennsylvania hosted by the Trump campaign.
“And I’m actually advocating a cognitive test for all people who want to run for president. Not based on age. Some of the greatest leaders in the world – and I’m not 80 and I’m not that close to 80,” Trump explained.
“In the Biden case, he’s 81 or 82.”
Steele’s appearance at the town hall was no surprise after her conservative views came to light in recent years.
Steele was suspended by ESPN in October 2021 after she made comments about former President Barack Obama and the Covid-19 vaccine.
The former presenter brushed off the hiccups and did not acknowledge the 78-year-old’s mistake
In an interview on Jay Cutler’s podcast, she rejected Covid-19 vaccination mandates, criticized women who dress provocatively, and took issue with Obama’s claims that he is African American.
“I think that’s fascinating considering his black father was nowhere to be found, but his white mother and grandmother raised him. Anyway, you do you, I’m going to do me,” she said of the former president.
Steele sued the network in April 2022 after claiming ESPN violated her First Amendment rights and Connecticut’s free speech rights by suspending her over comments.
Steele and the media giant reached a settlement last year, but the terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Front Office Sports previously reported that Steele was offered $501,000 by the network to drop her lawsuit.
More recently, Steele has had issues with trans women in sports.
In March, Steele denounced the decision to allow transgender athletes to compete in USA Powerlifting’s women’s division, after the sports organization lost a four-year discrimination lawsuit brought by a trans lifter.
Steele said the decision is “unfair to women” and pointed out that it was “ironic” that it was made during Women’s History Month, which started on March 1.
Steele has claimed that the network asked her not to talk about transgender swimmer Lia Thomas during her time at ESPN.
Steele left ESPN in August 2023 after 16 years with the sports media giant
She announced that she would be parting ways with the company to express her opinions more freely
Earlier this month, she hit the campaign trail with Danica Patrick, the driver who revealed she plans to vote for Trump in November, which will be the first time she has ever cast a ballot.
Patrick and Steele were pictured together wearing pink “Women for Trump” shirts as they made political stops in Georgia.
The sports couple also took photos with Lara Trump, Tulsi Gabbard and others in between campaign events at a local donut shop.
The Trump campaign also shared a video of the group singing along to Taylor Swift’s hit “22” before changing the lyrics to: “I don’t know about you, but I’m voting for Donald Trump.”
Swift publicly supported Harris in a lengthy Instagram statement after last month’s presidential debate.
Steele, Tulsi Gabbard, Danica Patrick and Lara Trump pose for a photo in Georgia
Steele, Patrick and others went on the campaign trail to support former President Trump
Trump’s confusion at Steele came a day after he surprised his supporters in Latrobe with an intimate story about golf legend Arnold Palmer.
He made a lewd joke about Palmer’s masculinity during a rally at Latrobe airport, now named after the seven-time major winner, who grew up in the Pennsylvania city.
“When he went to take a shower with the other professionals, they came out and said, ‘Oh my God.’ “I had to say it…I had to tell you the shower part because it’s true,” the 78-year-old said.
Trump then told the story of Palmer’s early life, describing how the talented young golfer grew into a wealthy champion who bought the local golf club and put his father in charge.