On Friday morning, former Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele delivered a social media gut punch to President Donald Trump, declaring that the commander-in-chief “might think of himself as a UFC champ, but in real life he’s more of a McDonald’s guy.” The prominent conservative’s jab came in reference to the UFC cage match Trump is preparing to host at the White House, which is being held in mid-June to mark the United States’ 250th birthday as well as Trump’s 80th.
“Trump wants to create the perfect backdrop as he rings in his 80th year to a testosterone-soaked spectacle of blood and chokeholds,” continued Steele, “surrounded by svelt men in uniforms.”
Steele made the statement while sharing an article in which he asserted that “the fitness requirements for Trump’s UFC fight show [are] a double standard.” He starts the piece by noting the inherently ridiculous nature of the event, but says that “somehow, the cage match isn’t even the height of absurdity.”
Citing recent reporting by the Washington Post, Steele goes on to explain that “military troops hoping to attend must meet specific body composition and fitness standards. In a memo that reads more like a casting call than a military directive, the Pentagon says service members seeking tickets to Trump’s UFC event must satisfy specific height-to-waist standards and meet all fitness requirements.”
“I wouldn’t normally pass judgement on other people’s fitness,” notes Steele, “but the president is the one who started this, and it’s not the first time he’s brought up the subject.” In fact, as Steele details, Trump is outright obsessed with the perception of fitness, if not its reality.
“The president has spent years cultivating an image of himself as a peak specimen of physical vigor,” writes Steele. “Former White House physician Ronny Jackson famously described him as having ‘incredibly good genes.’ Earlier this year, Trump’s latest White House physician reported that he stood 6-foot-3, weighed 224 pounds and enjoyed ‘excellent cognitive and physical health.’ One of the supporting pieces of evidence? His golf victories. Can we stop with this nonsense? At the reported ‘238’ pounds and a BMI of 29.7, Trump sits just shy of the obesity cutoff. It’s very convenient math.”
As Steele explains, Trump has long displayed a fragile relationship with measurements of all kinds, “whether we’re talking about crowd sizes, election margins or, apparently, his own height. When he stood next to Prince William, who is also 6-foot-3, Trump appeared visibly shorter. Social media has receipts. The mystery of his real height resurfaced when Lara Trump, who is 5-foot-11, appeared nearly the same height as the reportedly 6-foot-3 president in an Instagram video for her show, ‘My View With Lara Trump.’ In photos from China, she appeared to tower over her father-in-law despite his officially listed height. High heels may narrow the gap, but the photos illustrate how Trump’s height has become part of the factually challenged mythology around the president.”
What’s more, says Steele, while Trump demands that those around him be in top shape, his attempts to fudge the state of his own fitness have fallen flat with an unconvinced public.
“If the goal of the White House UFC spectacle is to project strength, it may not be working,” Steele concludes. “In a recent YouGov poll, two-thirds of respondents said they think the average American would defeat Trump in a physical fight. Just 10 percent picked the president. So while the administration is reportedly checking troops’ waistlines, the public appears unconvinced about the physical prowess of the man hosting the event.”
