Latest news with #SeanMcLean
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ex-White House Staffer Wants Federal Investigation Launched For Caitlin Clark, WNBA
Ex-White House Staffer Wants Federal Investigation Launched For Caitlin Clark, WNBA originally appeared on The Spun. WNBA fans, or fans of Caitlin Clark in particular, have been fuming in recent months over the league's inability to protect the Indiana Fever megastar. But one former White House staffer believes that the treatment she's received in the WNBA warrants a federal investigation. In a recent column for the Wall Street Journal, former White House staff member Sean McLean made the case that the "excessive fouling, targeting, and hostile comments" she has received in the WNBA constitute a "hostile work environment." He called for a federal probe into "potential civil rights violations." "The league has fostered a hostile workplace for Ms. Clark through excessive fouling, targeting, and hostile comments from other players and owners," McLean wrote. McLean argued that the "targeting" of Clark may "reflect a culture of disparate treatment" that warrants at least an investigation, if not punishments. He pointed to a different case involving Los Angeles Sparks star Dearica Hamby's federal discrimination complaint back in 2023, when she alleged that the Las Vegas Aces traded her because she was pregnant. "Ms. Clark's targeting may reflect a culture of disparate treatment, and the evidence provides reasonable cause for a federal probe into potential civil-rights violations. This would mirror the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission investigation into Dearica Hamby's pregnancy discrimination claims against the WNBA and her team. Congress and the Labor and Justice departments would be justified in examining the facts." Opposition As much as some basketball fans believe that Clark is being mistreated in the WNBA, many fans believe that this suggestion from McLean is a bridge too far. "I believe CC gets targeted and hit harder than any player in the league, but this is the WNBA. This is a sport. No way in (expletive) did you really call this civil rights violations. Are you truly comparing this to police brutality, fire hoses and other forms of ACTUAL civil rights violations to someone being FOULED in a basketball game. Come on, Now! The fact the WSJ published this is actually kind of embarrassing. You are entitled to your opinion, but this is way over the line. No, it doesn't demand federal scrutiny and calling them civil rights violations is insulting and disrespectful to so many people. Did you feel the same way when Michael Jordan was getting clotheslined by Bill Laimbeer harder than any foul CC has ever had in her life. Were those fouls civil rights violations? Heck, they wrote a book about beating the crap out of him," one user responded to the op-ed. "This is the weakest article in regards to sports that has ever been written," another said. "There's no nice way to say how dumb this is. You want the Federal Government to do intercede in the WNBA because you think Clark gets fouled too hard? Can you imagine how dumb Clark must think this is?" a third pointed out. Support That isn't to say that the suggestion has been completely rejected. ESPN's Stephen A. Smith was among the biggest voices in sports media to see the article and suggest that it might not be a bad idea: "I'm not here saying the case will be won by the government if it gets to the points. I'm saying they have a case, they have an argument," Smith said on Tuesday's episode of the Stephen A. Smith Show. "If the Trump administration can settle with Columbia for a $221 million settlement over what's taken place on a campus, you think you can definitively rule out what kind of noise could be made if the WNBA continues to allow this treatment of Caitlin Clark?" Others in the comments on the post agree that McLean might be onto something there. A few have said that if they were related to Clark, they would have advised her to leave the WNBA a while ago. Do you think there needs to be a federal investigation into fouling Caitlin Clark? Ex-White House Staffer Wants Federal Investigation Launched For Caitlin Clark, WNBA first appeared on The Spun on Aug 7, 2025 This story was originally reported by The Spun on Aug 7, 2025, where it first appeared.
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Donald Trump could target WNBA over Caitlin Clark controversy, warns Stephen A. Smith
Stephen A. Smith isn't dismissing a Wall Street Journal op-ed making the controversial argument that the federal government should investigate the WNBA for its treatment of Caitlin Clark. The opinion piece - written by Sean McLean, a former staffer in the first Trump White House and in two congressional GOP offices - argues that Clark is the victim of a hostile work environment. McLean - who stunningly compared Clark to Michael Jordan - argues that Clark's treatment, and what he perceives to be a lack of response from the WNBA, should be investigated and questioned by Congress and the Labor Department. The piece was divisive - with McLean receiving plenty of backlash on social media WNBA analysts, commentators, and fans; not only for the content of his piece, but also for his 'misleading' use of a quote from Las Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson. Wilson made a comment to the Associated Press last year in the context of Clark's boosted popularity in the league, where she said Clark's race was a 'huge thing' and that, 'I think a lot of people may say it's not about Black and white, but to me it is... it boils my blood when people say it's not about race, because it is'. Despite this being the context of her words, McLean used that quote to claim Wilson believes Clark is being targeted because she is white. In spite of the fervor the piece stirred up, Smith believes there may be support for an investigation into this matter. 'I'm not here saying the case will be won by the government if it gets to the points. I'm saying they have a case, they have an argument,' Smith said of the idea during an episode of his self-titled podcast on Tuesday. Smith, the host and executive producer of ESPN's 'First Take', also suggested that President Donald Trump could use this investigation to solidify support among his followers. 'Do we doubt that at his discretion, at his disposal, if he finds this to be an issue that is politically expedient to him, that Trump won't use this to feed his base?' Smith said. 'If [Clark] is seen to be physically getting abused on the basketball court in a way that is such a clear and flagrant discrepancy compared to what happens to others, that that man is not going to say something? 'You don't think Catilin Clark could become an issue of national, potentially international, and definitely federal proportions?' 'If the Trump administration can settle with Columbia for a $221 million settlement over what's taken place on a campus, you think you can definitively rule out what kind of noise could be made if the WNBA continues to allow this treatment of Caitlin Clark?'
