ESPN star Stephen A. Smith described Donald Trump’s election victory over Kamala Harris as a “thorough blow” and gave a brutal assessment of Democrats’ 2024 performance.
“There’s no way around it, Bill,” Smith told comedian and talk show host Bill Maher on the latest episode of Club Random. “You know more politics than I do, but a blind man can see that the Democrats got their ass kicked.”
Not only did the Republican candidate win 312 of the total 538 electoral votes, but Trump also won the popular vote after being named on 49.988 percent of all ballots, according to the latest figures from The New York Times.
For the increasingly political Smith, Trump’s victory was the result of an improved nomination process within the Republican Party.
While the billionaire reality TV star easily won Republican support in 2016, 2020 and 2024, the Democrats’ nomination process was complicated by Biden’s doomed decision to seek re-election. The late reversal of that choice by the president, and the party’s shadowy turn to Vice President Kamala Harris, did not help, according to Smith.
Stephen A. Smith provided a brutal assessment of Democrats’ 2024 performance
Smith criticized Biden’s decision to run for re-election and the process that led to Harris’ nomination
“Trump has been the Republican nominee since 2016,” Smith said. “It’s clear what conservatives want in the White House. That’s who they supported. They didn’t give a damn about the 34 charges. They didn’t give a damn about two impeachments. They didn’t give a damn about all the legal issues and all the lawsuits that the Democrats were dealing with. They said, ‘Joe, that’s who we want.’
Democrats, Smith said, “smeared the scepter” by settling for Harris, adding that the party did something similar in 2016 when Hillary Clinton won the nomination over Bernie Sanders amid widespread infighting at the left.
According to Smith, Clinton won the nomination in 2016 with the party’s help because people thought it was her “turn.”
At the time, the DNC became embroiled in controversy after WikiLeaks published internal emails claiming the party favored Clinton over Sanders. However, debate continues to this day as to whether that preference led to a tangible advantage for Clinton, who subsequently lost to Trump in the general election.
“That’s for the voters to decide,” Smith said. “And often it seems like the Democratic party has its claws in the mix.”
But Democrats’ most egregious move was Biden’s decision to run for re-election after once positioning himself as a transition leader for the party’s next generation of candidates, Smith explained.
“You would live to be 82 years old in the White House,” Smith said, noting Biden’s age.
“Oh, so you’re looking forward to a man who will be 82 and leave office at 86?” Smith asked. ‘Really and truly? I sit there and say, “You have to fuck me.”
“I knew I wasn’t voting for Trump,” Smith continued. ‘I knew that wouldn’t happen. I said to myself, ‘What are you thinking about? What do you think?”
Smith knew he wouldn’t vote for Trump, but admitted Biden’s decision to stay in the race left him in a dilemma: ‘Your guy would live to be 82 years old in the White House’
While admitting that Democrats have a “weak bullpen” when it comes to candidates, Smith told Maher that he supports Maryland Governor Wes Moore (pictured)
The result was, as Smith illustrated with boxing analogies, an “a** kicking.”
“Similar to Terrence Crawford-Errol Spence Jr,” Smith said, referring to Crawford’s knockout victory over his welterweight rival in 2023. “Yes, that works. It was such a rush.’
Smith’s political turn coincided with his ongoing contract negotiations with ESPN. The New York Post previously reported that Smith earns $12 million annually at the Worldwide Leader, but he is rumored to be in the market for a nine-figure deal.
‘[Dallas Cowboys quarterback] Dak Prescott just signed a $240 million contract,” Smith said on the Who’s Talking To Chris Wallace show in September. “He makes $60 million a year. Has won two playoff games in eight years.
‘I have been number one for twelve years. I’m sorry; in our respective industries, I win, and I am fully aware of my worth, and I will never apologize for that to anyone.”
While he admits Democrats have a “weak bullpen” when it comes to candidates, Smith told Maher he supports Maryland Governor Wes Moore.