San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich isn’t shy about his feelings on President Donald Trump.
Popovich, who has previously called Trump a “bully,” criticized Trump’s immigration ban and talked about current race relations in the United States, was angry with Trump’s latest comments about four US soldiers who were ambushed and killed in Niger.
About not calling the families of the soldiers who were killed, Trump said, “President Obama and other presidents, most of them didn’t make calls, a lot of them didn’t make calls. I like to call when it’s appropriate, when I think I’m able to do it.” And then when called out about it, Trump said that they “write letters” and that he “does a combination of both.”
It doesn’t take a long time to know that what was originally said was definitely a lie so Popovich called The Nation’s Dave Zirin to talk about Trump’s comments and wanted to make sure what was said was on the record.
“I’ve been amazed and disappointed by so much of what this President had said, and his approach to running this country, which seems to be one of just a never ending divisiveness. But his comments today about those who have lost loved ones in times of war and his lies that previous presidents Obama and Bush never contacted their families, is so beyond the pale, I almost don’t have the words.”
“This man in the Oval Office is a soulless coward who thinks that he can only become large by belittling others. This has of course been a common practice of his, but to do it in this manner–and to lie about how previous Presidents responded to the deaths of soldiers–is as low as it gets. We have a pathological liar in the White House: unfit intellectually, emotionally, and psychologically to hold this office and the whole world knows it, especially those around him every day. The people who work with this President should be ashamed because they know it better than anyone just how unfit he is, and yet they choose to do nothing about it. This is their shame most of all.”
When talking about President Trump, Popovich is someone who chooses his words carefully and makes sure whatever he says has plenty of meaning behind them.
Popovich graduated from the Air Force Academy and served in active duty in the 1970s operating spy satellites during the Cold War and going on goodwill missions playing for the Armed Forces basketball team in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. And it appeared Popovich felt very strongly about what was said to immediately call and choose to say what he said rather than being asked.
