Update: Donald Trump predicted on Truth Social Friday that Joe Rogan will be loudly booed the next time he enters a UFC arena to announce a fight. The Trump post doesn’t acknowledge Rogan had already clarified he did not officially endorse RFK Jr. for president.
After a segment of his podcast went viral and stirred major controversy this week, Joe Rogan cleared the air in an X post Friday.
Discussing the 2025 election cycle, Rogan said he thinks Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is “the only one” not gaslighting and manipulating voters.
“That’s politics,” he said. “They do it on the left. They do it on the right. They gaslight you, they manipulate you. They promote narratives. The only one who’s not doing that is Robert F. Kennedy Jr. I am a fan [of RFK Jr]. He’s the only one that makes sense to me. He doesn’t attack people. He attacks actions and ideas. He’s much more reasonable and intelligent.”
HAPPENING NOW: Right-wing X is shredding Joe Rogan for “endorsing” Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during his podcast.
The claim: Joe Rogan endorsed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for president.
What Rogan said: “That’s politics. They do it on the left. They do it on the right. They gaslight… pic.twitter.com/vkmd4zFBdd
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) August 9, 2024
The statement caused many people online to believe Rogan had delivered a tacit endorsement of Kennedy.
However, after backlash from some people in the MAGA base, Rogan issued a message clarifying his stance on the current election.
“For the record, this isn’t an endorsement,” he wrote. “This is me saying that I like RFK Jr. as a person, and I really appreciate the way he discusses things with civility and intelligence. I think we could use more of that in this world. I also think Trump raising his fist and saying ‘fight!’ after getting shot is one of the most American fucking things of all time. I’m not the guy to get political information from. If you want that from a comic, go to comic Dave Smith. He actually knows what he’s talking about.”
For the record, this isn’t an endorsement. This is me saying that I like RFKjr as a person, and I really appreciate the way he discusses things with civility and intelligence.
I think we could use more of that in this world.I also think Trump raising his fist and saying… https://t.co/pzkHe9SKVS
— Joe Rogan (@joerogan) August 9, 2024
The situation appears similar to a recent controversy surrounding Kyle Rittenhouse, who took a sharp U-turn and decided to support Donald Trump after being railed online for stating he wasn’t going to vote for the 45th President.
