"I love my black job": Simone Biles takes apparent dig at Trump
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Simone Biles poses with her gold medal and a goat necklace at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on Aug. 1. Photo: Loic Venance/AFP via Getty Images
After Simone Biles cemented her status as one of the greatest gymnasts of all time at the Paris Olympics, she took an apparent dig at former President Trump on Friday.
Why it matters: It's one of the few overtly political moments at the Paris Games but underscores Biles' sense of triumph after she drew flak from Trump's now-running mate JD Vance for leaving the Tokyo Olympics to focus on her mental health.
Driving the news: "I love my black job," Biles wrote on X Friday.
- She posted the comment in response to another user who had written, "Simone Biles being the GOAT, winning Gold medals and dominating gymnastics is her black job."
- It's an apparent dig at Trump's controversial comments earlier this week, telling a roomful of Black journalists that immigrants are taking "Black jobs."
- Trump also used similar language about "Black jobs" during his presidential debate against President Biden in June.
The big picture: Biles has won two gold medals at the Paris Games so far and has three events left to go.
- It has been a stunning comeback for the Olympian, who was forced to exit the 2020 Tokyo Games to focus on her mental health.
- Her recent success — coupled with the 2024 presidential race — has drawn fresh scrutiny to old remarks about her by Sen. Vance (R-Ohio).
Flashback: Back in 2021, Vance seemed to throw shade at the praise and empathy Biles got for withdrawing from the Olympics for her mental health.
- "I think it reflects pretty poorly on our sort of therapeutic society that we try to praise people, not for moments of strength, not for moments of heroism, but for their weakest moments," Vance said at the time, per the New York Times.
- Democratic National Committee spokesperson Aida Ross called out the remarks on Thursday, saying Vance was in "no position to be talking about anyone's else's 'weakest moments'" as he contends with a "gaffe-filled rollout that has left him as the most unpopular V.P. pick in decades," the Times reported.
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