Some men walk into controversy. Donald Trump seems to moonwalk through it effortlessly. And he has people like Dana White to thank for it. The UFC CEO recently appeared on The New Yorker Radio Hour podcast with David Remnick, where White’s UFC legacy was a major part of the conversation. However, as is often the case with him, the conversation inadvertently made its way to his 25-year long friendship with the President. So when Remnick brought up the allegations that Trump is a racist, White attempted a defense that was strange to say the least. 

“These things that he’s a racist and he’s a Nazi, and he is this and that, I mean, Donald Trump, all this stuff’s coming out now,” White said. “The ‘Michael’ movie just came out, and you see all these videos now popping up of Trump defending Michael Jackson and the type of person that he was, and that Michael Jackson was around his children and around his family a lot.”

“But wait a minute, Dana,” Remnick pushed back. “Michael Jackson—as talented as he was, as brilliant as he was — was a deeply, deeply flawed human being, to say the least. And was abusive [from] everything we know about him… to kids.”

“I don’t know if that’s true,” White responded quickly. “But I can tell you the president had a very good relationship with Michael Jackson and had Michael Jackson around his kids all the time. And you know, I defended him when that stuff was going down. So to call the guy a racist is crazy. He’s not a racist.”

The bizarreness of Dana White’s defense, while it doesn’t hold water, is understandable since Donald Trump is hosting the UFC on his South Lawn next month. So its not all that inconceivable that White would defend Trump against such accusations.

The accusations Remnick is talking about are based on a long list of public statements, actions, and policies that critics interpret as racially prejudiced, insensitive, or favoring white people. Take, for instance, the 1970s Housing Discrimination Lawsuit, or Trump’s full-page ads in New York newspapers after the 1989 Central Park Five incident, or the Birtherism controversy with former President Barack Obama.

Regardless of the weight of accusations, White believes the Trump he knows is no racist. He defended Trump just a few weeks ago on the The Breakfast Club as well when host Charlamagne tha God grilled him on his continued support of Trump despite the ongoing financial crisis and the Iran war. But still, for White, Trump remains a patriot.

“If he [were] that type of person, I never would associate with that type of person, no matter who he was,” White told Remnick. “I can tell you this, he’s not a racist. He’s not a fascist. He loves this country. And if you’re an American, race, religion, whatever it is, President Trump is on your team. That I guarantee you.”

And it’s not just Dana White who feels this way.

Donald Trump Jr. echoes claims from Dana White to defend his father

Donald Trump Jr. defended his father against racism accusations in his November 2019 book Triggered.

“Oh, and by the way, given all the things my father has been called, particularly a ‘racist,’ it sure sounds odd that he’d let his son vacation with a black man or hang out with Michael Jackson, doesn’t it?” wrote Trump Jr. “If he’s a racist, he’s sure not very good at it.”

He added that Michael Jackson lived in Trump Tower and would come over to play video games with him and Eric when they were young. Trump Jr. presented these personal anecdotes as evidence contradicting claims of his father’s racism. 

Trump Jr.’s defense appears to mirror Dana’s recent one somewhat. While a case could be made that a son would obviously defend his father, Dana White stands to gain a lot more with the upcoming UFC White House event.

There’s little doubt that Dana White is biased when it comes to Donald Trump. And it’s understandable since the President often turns up for UFC events and has praised the work White has done over the years. But how their friendship takes shape post the UFC White House event, especially if the Iran war continues, remains to be seen.