Andrius Petrucenia / CC BY-SA 2.0
UFC chief executive Dana White said Saturday he plans to fly to Washington to meet with President Donald Trump on Monday, after Trump publicly offered him the job of White House press secretary, though a source familiar with the matter said White declined the offer.
Trump announced the offer on social media Saturday while at his Florida golf club, calling White “a violent Fighter and Warrior” and asking him to bring six UFC fighters as assistants. “Dana, please take the job!” he wrote. White House communications director Steven Cheung reposted the message, adding, “Hell yeah! Do it, @DanaWhite!”
White, who was in London for a boxing event Saturday, deflected questions about the offer at a news conference, saying only that he plans to meet with Trump on Monday, the Associated Press reported. He did not say whether he would take the job, and a meeting is not an acceptance.
A source familiar with the matter told CNN that White declined the offer, while one aide said Trump was joking about it. The White House press secretary job has been in flux: Karoline Leavitt left the role in August, and her successor, Katie Zacharia, was fired after a five-day stint. Trump told CBS News on Friday he would “be doing maybe a few changes” to his team.
White, the longtime head of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, has been one of Trump’s most visible allies, speaking at the last three Republican National Conventions. Trump hosted a UFC fight on the White House lawn this summer.
JBizNews Desk | West Palm Beach, Florida
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