Trump demands an apology from ESPN after SportsCenter host calls him a white supremacist

The president was up bright and early this morning to complain on Twitter about the filibuster rule (something Republicans only do when they’re not taking advantage of it) and to capitalize on the news of Friday’s terror attack in London in order to buoy support for his Muslim ban. Those tweets weren’t enough to make him feel like a big tough guy, though, so he chose to attack ESPN over derogatory (though not unreasonable) comments made by one of the network’s hosts earlier this week.

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SportsCenter’s Jemele Hill called Trump a white supremacist on her personal Twitter account, which got Sarah Huckabee Sander’s dander up. She told reporters on Wednesday that she felt it was a “fireable offense,” which, coming from a government official, is the kind of actual censorship far-right types are always crying about. Hill deleted the tweets and issued an apology for putting ESPN in this position, which her employer accepted, even though the network reportedly tried to keep Hill off the air on Thursday.

ESPN’s official statement on the matter acknowledged Hill’s right to consider the president is a white supremacist, a belief she might hold because Trump has once again seized on people’s fear and grief to push his anti-Muslim agenda, while also noting that her feelings don’t represent the network’s. That wasn’t worded sternly enough for Trump, though, who is just now complaining about being subject to criticism as the most powerful person in the country. It really must be so hard to have to hear about how you’re a white supremacist just because you think white supremacists are “fine people” and those who oppose them are “pretty bad dudes.”

Trump must think he’s within his rights to demand an apology from ESPN because he’s certainly never posted disparaging comments about the chief executive while also serving as a TV host.

Well, okay, but who was even watching The Celebrity Apprentice in the 12th season?