Stephen A. Smith, who said he is seriously considering a run for president in 2028, didn’t sound much like a potential Democratic nominee in an interview Thursday night with Trump fanboy Sean Hannity.
Smith, who often appears on Hannity’s show and routinely finds common political ground with the conservative host, claimed Donald Trump is “gaining traction within the Democratic Party,” citing gains among Black and young voters.
Smith, who hosts ESPN’s “First Take,” is only half right. Trump is polling much better with younger voters. A YouGov/Economist poll found that 48% of voters ages 30 to 44 have a favorable view of Trump, up 10 percent from April.
Black voters are less enthused about the opening act of Trump’s second term. In a recent poll by Insider Advantage, only 28% of Black Americans surveyed approve of Trump’s job performance. Seventy-one percent disapprove.
“I will say this to you, when you look at the state of affairs right now, I’m looking at ‘Newsweek’ just a few days ago,” Smith said. “Trump is gaining traction within the Democratic Party, Black voters, young voters, he did it during the election, but it seems to be the trajectory seems to be going in a forward direction.”
“You pointed to the mayor of Chicago and his stance and how counterproductive that appears to be,” Smith continued. “You showed Jasmine Crockett, they haven’t realized yet that if it’s AOC or it’s Jasmine Crockett, there’s a reason Sean Hannity shows them every chance he gets, he wants them to be illuminated. He wants them to be front and center for the Democratic Party because it will ensure that the Republicans are going to win in 2026 and 2028.”
Smith is basically recycling the conventional wisdom that Democrats must move to the middle to win the midterms and the 2028 race. Historically, that’s been true, and the current incarnation of the Democrat Party has record-low approval ratings.
Is Smith the leader Democrats have been desperately seeking? He seems to think so. But only about 2 percent of voters agree, according to McLaughlin and Associates.
Still, he remains undeterred. On Thursday, Smith blasted “tone deaf” Democrats, telling Hannity, “their focus seems to be on doing anything but being the antithesis of Trump, instead of helping to govern the country.”
Smith also insisted that “there are some things that he might be doing well ” when the discussion turned to Trump’s second term.
Smith’s latest right-leaning commentary drew considerable criticism on social media and comment forums.
“Trump is gaining?” asked one incredulous reader on Mediaite. “Trump has been shut down by the courts, Scotus and outmaneuvered by every country, including China, Russia and our allies.”
“Trump’s deportations hurt American farmers and businesses and his tariffs are hurting consumers and his big BS bill will hurt even more Americans if passed,” he continued. “The only thing Trump gained is a lot more of his stupid followers are now anti-Trumpers.”
Others targeted the messenger more than the message.
“And no one is surprised, we could see this months ago when Stephen A Smith kept praising Trump,” a Mediate commenter opined. “He’s not a democrat, he should stop lying to everyone and wasting people’s time.”
“Stephen A. is an opportunist,” wrote another, a sentiment widely echoed when it comes to Smith.
