President-elect Donald Trump has nominated former NFL star Herschel Walker as ambassador to The Bahamas.
President-elect Donald Trump has selected Georgia native Herschel Walker to become ambassador to The Bahamas.
The former star running back once played for the USFL’s New Jersey Generals, owned by the real estate tycoon and future reality television personality.
On the controversial social media platform Truth Social, Trump said, “Herschel has spent decades serving as an Ambassador to our Nation’s youth, our men and women in the Military, and athletes at home and abroad.”
The president-elect has received much criticism from many in the African-American community for the lack of African-Americans nominated for cabinet positions in his upcoming administration.
Many African-American Republican politicians had campaigned vigorously for Trump.
However, his cabinet positions, thus far, have been overwhelmingly White.
The 2024 Trump campaign, and many other Republican politicians, ran on getting rid of diversity, equity and inclusion, vowing to kill the so-called “woke” movement.
The incoming commander-in-chief emphasized that Walker served as co-chair for the White House’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition.
Brett Samuels of The Hill reported, “Walker was a celebrated running back at University of Georgia, where he won the Heisman Trophy. He went on to play in the NFL.
“Trump backed Walker in a 2022 Georgia Senate race to try and unseat Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.). Neither candidate received 50 percent of the vote in the general election, and Warnock defeated Walker in a runoff. Walker’s campaign, however, was plagued by controversies and false statements.”
Many African-Americans criticized Trump and the Republican Party for the optics during Walker’s failed 2022 senate campaign.
Some even questioned Walker’s acumen and the fact that it seemed like Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) were his handlers during some television interviews.
Many critics on social media compared it to the movie “Trading Places,” in which two White millionaires use a poor Black person in somewhat of a social experiment.
During the 2022 senatorial campaign, many of Walker’s critics brought up his history of alleged domestic violence against women.
In a December 2022 story for NBC News, “Cheryl Parsa…told NBC News…that she was in a five-year relationship with Walker in the 2000s. During an argument in 2005, she said, Walker pressed her head against a wall, grabbed her throat, and cocked his fist to throw a punch that missed and struck the wall.”
Parsa said, “He had his hand on my throat, my chest, and then he leaned back to throw a punch. And luckily, I was able to avoid that. And the punch landed on the wall instead of me.”
Walker also faced domestic violence allegations from his ex-wife Cindy Grossman in 2008.
Grossman said, “He got a gun and put it to my temple. He said, ‘I’m going to blow your [expletive] brains out.”
Walker admitted to that he battled mental illness during a debate with Sen. Warnock.
But he said, “I continue to get help if I need help. But I don’t need any help. I’m doing well.”
Additionally, the former star running back for the Dallas Cowboys and Minnesota Vikings has admitted to having multiple, distinct personalities inside of him in the past.
In a 2013 interview, Walker said, “I’ve got personalities that do a lot of things, including a guy who wanted to kill someone.”
Nevertheless, Trump also floated the idea of putting Walker in charge of a new missile defense shield prior to the election in November before settling on the role of ambassador to The Bahamas.
The two-time presidential winner described Walker as “a successful businessman, philanthropist (and) former Heisman Trophy winner.”
Trump himself has faced allegations of violence towards women with a judge saying that he basically sexually assaulted author E. Jean Carroll.
The incident with Carroll also led to Trump losing a defamation lawsuit filed by Carroll for the lies that he told about the victim of his sexual assault.
The New York native has used a loyalty test when selecting people to work in his upcoming administration and Walker has remained one of Trump’s most devoted followers.
Trump chose a new running mate in Vice President-elect J.D. Vance because former Vice President Mike Pence upheld the United States Constitution, refusing to steal the 2020 election from President Joe Biden.
In response, a mob of insurrectionists stormed the U.S. Capitol, aiming to lynch Trump’s former Veep.
Nevertheless, Walker will still need the Senate to confirm his appointment.
Despite Walker’s alleged history with violence against women and paying for women to have abortions, very few can criticize his past exploits on the gridiron.
According to The African American Encyclopedia, “Walker set ten National Collegiate Athletic Association records, including most carries (994) and most yards gained (5,259) over his three years (at University of Georgia). He left college in 1983 to play for the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League. He led the league in rushing in 1983 and was third in 1984. In 1985, he set a single-season record for rushing with 2,411 yards gained. Additionally, he has been in the top five nationally in track and field for the sixty-yard dash and competed in the 1992 Winter Olympics as pusher for the U.S. bobsled team.”
With the Cowboys, Walker led the National Football League in rushing.
His trade to the Vikings, however, led to a boatload of NFL draft picks that helped “America’s Team” become a dynasty in the 1990s, winning three Super Bowls.
