Despite the number of credible sources who have come forward to corroborate most of the Rio gas station robbery story told by Ryan Lochte, the damage may already be done. He has already lost several sponsors and most of his credibility.
If he never returns to competition, he will have “retired in shame,” and if he does, he will re-enter the international stage with a cloud over his accomplishments.
And although the Olympian apologized for his unacceptable behavior, others were quick to paint him as the poster boy for ‘ugly American’ behavior:
Ryan Lochte is everything people hate about Americans. Self entitled & privileged. How hes a 32 year old “kid just having fun” is beyond me.
— s (@Sleazyweasleys) August 20, 2016
#RyanLochte is everything foreigners hate about America #douchebag #irresponsible #liar
— Barbara Ragghianti (@barbaragghianti) August 19, 2016
They even left notes in Rio, apologizing on his behalf:
#Rio2016 “Sorry about Ryan Lochte” the apology from Americans across the globe. http://bit.ly/2bFLurQ http://pic.twitter.com/yoPkRv0JIG
— Cody Godwin (@codilicious) August 21, 2016
Some — including several media outlets — cited Lochte’s behavior in an effort to tie him to brash Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Cynthia Dill queried in the Portland Press Herald:
“How much do you want to bet that Ryan Lochte is a Donald Trump supporter? He’s got the hair for it, right? Lochte’s blue locks with Trump’s red pelt and the white hair of Roger Ailes will look so beautiful on stage at the Mar-A-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, with hundreds of foreign workers slaving away in the background.
And is it me, or does shirtless Lochte in the pool resemble shirtless Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, Trump’s idol, on a horse? But it’s not just Lochte’s appearance that suggests he might soon be another white face of the Trump campaign; it’s his winning attitude.
So Lochte said on the world stage he was a victim of armed robbery when really he got caught drunk vandalizing private property and urinating in public. He won the gold medal, didn’t he?”
The Associated Press used their similarly-timed apologies — Lochte for his behavior and Trump for his comments — to draw a comparison between the two. And it wasn’t alone:
Donald Trump: I can offer the most insufferable non-apology you’ve ever heard. Ryan Lochte: lol that’s adorable.
— (((Popehat))) (@Popehat) August 19, 2016
And some cited…other similarities:
The commonalities of #RyanLochte and #DonaldTrump http://pic.twitter.com/mB44rKrBPK
— Tim Jack (@timjacknovak) August 18, 2016
Some suggested that they ought to work together:
The trump campaign is about a month away from naming Ryan Lochte as new campaign manager.
— Chelsea Handler (@chelseahandler) August 19, 2016
Or that, at the very least, Lochte was going to vote for Trump:
I bet you all the money that Ryan Lochte is going to vote for Donald Trump.
— Karls Barkley (@KarleeKanz) August 18, 2016
But an interview with The Wall Street Journal from a 2012 Fashion Week party suggests that Lochte likely leans left, politically speaking. When asked after the London Olympics what he thought about the upcoming (2012) Presidential election, he responded:
“I’ve been going non-stop left and right. I haven’t had time to watch the news. I’ve got to catch up on that. But, you know, Obama did great the past four years, so I’m kind of more leaning towards him.”
Lochte concluded his comments with his trademarked word: “Jeah.”
The post Media Just Can’t Wait to Pigeonhole ‘Ugly American’ Ryan Lochte as a Trump Supporter appeared first on Independent Journal Review.
Source: independent journal
The post Media Just Can’t Wait to Pigeonhole ‘Ugly American’ Ryan Lochte as a Trump Supporter appeared first on .@tonygreene113.
No comments:
Post a Comment