‘DAMN FOOL’

Stephen A. Smith Rips Into DeSantis Over NAACP’s Florida Travel Warning

He claimed the Republican governor has “lost his damn mind.”

ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith tore into Ron DeSantis on his podcast Tuesday in the wake of the NAACP issuing a travel advisory calling Florida “openly hostile” to people of color and LGBTQ+ individuals. The NAACP said its warning came in “direct response to … DeSantis’ aggressive attempts to erase Black history and to restrict diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in Florida schools.” Speaking on his Know Mercy podcast, Smith said that while he is not an “aficionado on this subject,” he retained the right to criticize someone who “looks like a damn fool.” “If you’re DeSantis, it’s bad enough you’ve alienated the Latino community, it’s bad enough, you’ve alienated tens of millions of women because I assure you, even though you have an abundance of women against abortion, most would like the right to make the choice for themselves as opposed to having male politicians dictate those choices for them,” Smith said. “Now we get to this latest stuff and this is where it hits home for me cause I’m a Black man and we’re talking about the NAACP.” He added: “Respectfully to the governor, Ron DeSantis, who obviously has offended Latinos, Blacks, women—have you lost your mind or do you just want to throw away the election? Is that what you’re trying to do?”