Stephen A. Smith isn’t running for president of the United States, but let him tell you how easy it would be to win.
Smith joined The Megyn Kelly Show this week, and predictably, the prospect of running for president was broached. Because despite insisting he won’t run for president, Smith keeps leaving the door open just enough to keep the topic alive and the question valid.
And that’s exactly what Smith did when Kelly asked about running for president. Smith said he’s not considering it, citing his new $100 million contract with ESPN, which pays a lot more than being POTUS. But even though he’s not considering it, Smith offered just enough to spark the people calling for him to run by noting he would win the primary.
“Do I believe that if I committed myself to knowing politics the way you and others know it, do I believe that I could win a Democratic nomination?” Smith asked. “Hell yes. Particularly the state of affairs that exist, I think it would be a cakewalk. I think I’d take them all out. I really, really believe that. I really think I could take them.
“And maybe in three years from now I’ll feel a bit differently, I just can’t imagine that’s gonna happen. I’m not a politician…I’m no aficionado, but it’s just so bad on the left right now. And I’ll tell you, I do believe that I’d be a formidable candidate because I know I know how to debate, I would look forward to going up against folks on the right and the left and I would be about commonsense.”
Smith should have told Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo that beating them would be a “cakewalk” when they were on his podcast. It would be interesting to see if potential Democratic candidates are as confident in the ESPN host’s ability to win as he is.
Hopefully Smith talks himself into running because it would be fun to watch, particularly on the debate stage. But a cakewalk? Smith doesn’t hide from the fact that he’s not a politician, which Kelly noted Trump wasn’t either. But Smith is not famous enough to win on fame alone.
As much as his fame has risen and started to transcend sports in recent years, Smith still is not as famous as Trump is or was at any point in the last four decades. And even Trump dipped his toe into the presidential race at least three other times before he really dove into the Republican primary in 2015.
But Smith knows keeping his name in the conversation is good for business as he continues to build his brand and his podcast. And credit him for being able to keep his name in the conversation while continuing to insist he has no interest in running.
