There’s been no shortage of reflection and celebration when it comes to the remarkable life of Muhammad Ali. That’s essentially the deal when you’re one of the most beloved figures in American sport and American culture in general. He was the champ, he stood for his beliefs and ranks as a true one-off.
Among the tributes pouring in as the public remembers The Greatest is one from presidential candidate and “it’s 2016 and everything seems to come back to this guy” press magnet Donald Trump. The current GOP hope for the White House marked Ali’s passing with a tweet very much in the voice of The Donald.
Muhammad Ali is dead at 74! A truly great champion and a wonderful guy. He will be missed by all!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 4, 2016
Naturally, the internet went “wait, isn’t that the dude that’s been making incredibly controversial remarks about Muslims?” To which a healthy stockpile of receipts replied, “YUP!” It was pretty much instantaneous that a certain infamous tweet was placed in the spotlight to dispute Trump having a pro-Ali stance.
https://twitter.com/BuzzFeedAndrew/status/738952100009390080?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Trump can’t be too surprised that his tweet got this response. After all, his comments about Muslims have been much more inflammatory than they’ve been diplomatic. It’s an issue that Muhammad Ali even spoke out about and was swiftly recirculating on the internet once again.
Statement from Muhammad Ali on the proposed Muslim ban (from 12/9/15)pic.twitter.com/VxH7Sj0NPh
— Matt Mackowiak (@MattMackowiak) June 4, 2016
If there’s a single tweet that sums up a healthy chunk of Twitter’s reaction to Trump’s comments on Ali, it’s this one.
https://twitter.com/briangaar/status/739117456724131845
(via BroBible)