What to Know
- Figure skater Adam Rippon is one of two openly gay American athletes in Pyeongchang for Olympics
- He has been sparring with Vice President Mike Pence for months about the veep's record on gay rights
- Rippon said at a news briefing Tuesday he didn't want the Pence spat to define his Olympics experience -- and that got Trump Jr. going
Olympic figure skater Adam Rippon found himself under fire on Twitter Tuesday from none other than the president's son. But it didn't take long for his supporters to clap back on his behalf.
Rippon, an openly gay athlete who has become a fan favorite in figure skating during the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics, said at a news briefing Tuesday that he didn't want his Olympics experience to be about U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, with whom he has been sparring for months over the pol's gay rights record.
Donald Trump Jr. took issue with that, taking to Twitter to say, "Really? Then Perhaps you shouldn’t have spent the past few weeks talking about him. I haven’t heard him mention you once???" and linking to an article on Rippon.
Really? Then Perhaps you shouldn’t have spent the past few weeks talking about him. I haven’t heard him mention you once??? https://t.co/8lcCsoyBsq
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) February 14, 2018
Trump Jr. apparently didn't realize Pence had mentioned Rippon before. Pence had tweeted at the skater directly on Feb. 8 after Rippon previously said he didn't want the month-long dispute with the Republican vice president to overshadow his long-awaited Olympic performance.
It didn't take long for Rippon's supporters to point out Trump Jr's mistake on Tuesday, even though the figure skater didn't give the president's son any air.
Actor Ike Barinholtz, co-star of Hulu’s The Mindy Project tweeted, “Nothing more patriotic than taunting a US Olympic athlete during the Olympics." Rippon replied with a GIF "The tea is exceptionally good today" and a "love you dude," before Mindy Kaling also jumped in to the conversation with her support.
Countless other Twitter users also shared their support, tweeting the president's son to correct him, and some accusing him of spreading "fake news."
Local
Rippon gets back in the figure skating action Thursday night (East Coast time) with the men's short program. It's not clear if Trump Jr. plans to watch. But you can catch it all live right here.
