For a brief period over the weekend, it looked like United States President Donald Trump had zeroed in on a new White House press secretary: Dana White.
asserted
Trump → look → secretary
A stocky former fighter with a shaved head and a penchant for wearing black, White currently serves as the chief executive of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts company that counts Trump among its fans.
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that → shave → fans
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Makhachev → knock → retirement
But on Sunday night, after hours of speculation, Trump put an end to the rumours he himself started.
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he → put → rumours
“I was only kidding.
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I → kid → ?
But Dana loves the idea,” Trump said from an airport tarmac in West Palm Beach, Florida.
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Trump → love → Beach
He’s great.”
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He → ’ → ?
Just a day earlier, Trump had posted a message to his Truth Social platform, purporting to offer White the press secretary job.
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Trump → post → job
“I am pleased to announce that the Great Dana White, a violent Fighter and Warrior, has been offered the job of Press Secretary of the United States,” Trump wrote on Saturday.
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Trump → announce → Saturday
He proceeded to explain – in seemingly tongue-in-cheek style – that he had asked White to bring along fighters like Islam Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov as “assistants”.
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he → proceed → assistants
The post was accompanied by images of the muscle-bound fighters, several of them baring their teeth.
“We need these people to defend us against the Lunatic Left.
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people → accompany → Left
Dana will be a Press Secretary like none other,” Trump continued in his post.
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Trump → continue → post
Trump has a history of unconventional picks for public office.
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Trump → have → office
The press secretary role remains vacant after Trump briefly appointed political commentator Katie Zacharia to the job in October.
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Trump → remain → October
Zacharia lasted five days, the shortest tenure of any White House press secretary in history.
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Zacharia → last → history
Critics questioned her legal credentials and her job performance.
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Critics → question → credentials
At her inaugural briefing, she struggled to deliver her opening remarks, and the meeting ended within 15 minutes.
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meeting → struggle → minutes
White would likewise have been an out-of-the-box choice to serve as press secretary.
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White → serve → secretary
But political insiders say Trump has an affinity for pushing the envelope of what is acceptable in Washington, DC.
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what → say → Washington
“Knowing President Trump as I do, I believe he was partly serious,” Rob Arlett, a Republican strategist and former Delaware campaign manager for Trump, told Al Jazeera.
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Arlett → know → Jazeera
“He and Dana White share a longstanding friendship and business relationship dating back more than 25 years, when Trump supported the UFC by hosting events at his Atlantic City casino.
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Trump → share → casino
Their mutual loyalty and trust remain strong.
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loyalty → remain → ?
Arlett believes Trump often floats ideas publicly to gauge reactions before deciding his next move.
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Trump → believe → move
It’s also part of the president’s strategy, he said, to generate headlines, test public opinion and assess the response.
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he → ’ → response
Born on July 28, 1969, in Manchester, Connecticut, White is a two-time college dropout and former boxer who turned a passion for fighting into a billion-dollar enterprise.
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who → bear → enterprise
In December 2015, White endorsed the Republican leader’s bid for the presidency, even though Trump was considered a long shot at the time.
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Trump → endorse → time
“You will never hear me say a negative thing about Donald Trump,” White told TMZ Sports.
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White → hear → Sports
“Donald will get my vote.”
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Donald → get → vote
Trump went on to win the 2016 presidential election in his first successful bid for public office.
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Trump → go → office
The two men’s careers have been intertwined for decades, though.
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careers → intertwine → decades
White began his career running gyms in cities like Boston and Las Vegas, and eventually, he started to manage champion fighters like Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell.
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he → begin → Ortiz
It was the 1990s, and both men were competitors in a new competition circuit known as the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
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men → know → Championship
The tournament was designed to bring different martial arts, like jujitsu and wrestling, together in one arena.
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tournament → design → arena
White would ultimately be credited with transforming the sport into an international commercial success.
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White → credit → success
He became president of the UFC in 2001, after the businessmen Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta bought the company for $2m.
But the sport was struggling at first, according to White’s own account.
uncertain
sport → become → account
Critics slammed its tournaments as too violent and unregulated.
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Critics → slam → tournaments
“It was basically considered a blood sport,” White told the Republican National Convention in 2016, as he rallied on behalf of Trump’s campaign.
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he → consider → campaign
“State athletic commissions didn’t support us.
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commissions → support → us
Arenas around the world refused to host our events.
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Arenas → refuse → events
Nobody took us seriously.
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Nobody → take → us
…and 28 more, not listed.
The Aporia
