2:06
- ABC News
- Donald Trump
- August 5, 2018
Melania Trump not 'taking sides' in war of words
The first lady said her focus is her initiative, Be Best.
2:06
Jordan, meanwhile, responded to the president's tweet through a spokesperson.
\"I support LJ,\" he said. \"He’s doing an amazing job for his community.”
Lemon, too, responded via Twitter, using the first lady's iniative against her husband.
\"Who's the real dummy?\" he tweeted. \"A man who puts kids in classrooms or one who puts kids in cages. #BeBest.\"
Who’s the real dummy? A man who puts kids in classrooms or one who puts kids in cages? #BeBest https://t.co/XO50qVksnR
— Don Lemon (@donlemon) August 4, 2018
Lemon's interview with James only made direct mention of Trump at the end of the hour-long interview. Lemon asked James if he had any aspirations of running for office. He responded, \"I don't think so,\" until Lemon brought up Trump as a possible opponent.
\"If someone tried to recruit a LeBron to run for president, they said, 'Listen, they've got no one, if you don't run, Trump's going to win,' would you run?\" Lemon asked.
\"Well, in that case, I may,\" James said.
![\"Cleveland](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/US/trump-hillary-ap-mo-20180804_hpMain_4x3t_384.jpg\")
At the end of the interview, Lemon asked if James, \"What would you say to the president if he were sitting right here?\"
The future NBA Hall of Famer responded, \"I would never sit across from him.\" He followed that up to say he would sit across from Barack Obama.
James has been outspoken in his dislike for Trump in the past. He unleashed a tweet following the racial violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, last August saying, \"Hate has always existed in America. Yes we know that but Donald Trump just made it fashionable again! Statues has nothing to do with us now!\"
Hate has always existed in America. Yes we know that but Donald Trump just made it fashionable again! Statues has nothing to do with us now!
— LeBron James (@KingJames) August 15, 2017
He also called him a \"so-called president\" in the wake of the Charlottesville violence.
James also said he wouldn't attend a ceremony at the White House if his team had won the NBA Finals. (In the end, the Golden State Warriors won, and they won't be attending either.)
The basketball player appeared at a rally for Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential campaign in his home state of Ohio, a critical swing state during the election that Trump ended up carrying.
That campaign appearance probably turned the tide, as Trump didn't always feel so strongly against James. In 2013, he congratulated James on winning Athlete of the Year at the ESPYs and \"a great guy.\"
Congratulations to @KingJames on winning Athlete of the Year in last night’s @ESPYS. LeBron is also a great guy!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 18, 2013
James opted out of his contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier this offseason and signed with the Los Angeles Lakers.
ABC News' Wil Cruz contributed to this report.
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