Stephen A. Smith Claims Trump Branded Himself 'The Greatest President that Ever Lived' During White House Meeting
Stephen A. Smith has defended having dinner with Donald Trump at the White House last week.
Oct. 22 2026, Published 6:00 p.m. ET
Stephen A. Smith has claimed Donald Trump dubbed himself "the greatest President that ever lived" during their meeting at the White House, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The ESPN star, 59, made the claim while defending his attendance at a dinner last week, months after the commander in chief stated Smith "wasn't smart enough" to be president.
Trump 'Didn't Duck Any Smoke Whatsoever'
The ESPN star praised Trump for answering his questions.
During an appearance on The View, Smith said he accepted an offer to have dinner with Trump to advocate for HBCUs and the Black community.
Smith, who was joined by Bill Maher and musician Kid Rock, said Trump "didn't duck any smoke whatsoever" while being grilled on certain subjects.
He continued: "Essentially, it amounted to what I consider to be a very substantive evening. We were there for over four hours in the White House, and Donald Trump did not run from any questions.
"He answered every single question. He was very, very defiant with any criticism that came in his direction, or any disagreement. But as Kid Rock went on Fox News on Friday morning and articulated, it was a pleasant meeting. It was respectful."
Stephen A. Smith Challenged Trump On Wars
Smith questioned Trump's claim there would be 'no new wars.'
Smith then explained how he challenged Trump on his foreign policy record, saying: "I pushed back when he brought up Venezuela. He started talking about them. He started talking about the war with Russia and Ukraine, obviously Iran as well, justifying that.
"I said, 'You said there was gonna be no new wars, but then there was a war. You bombed them. You said they were obliterated. Then you came back, you bombed them again. Then you said it would be over in four weeks. Then after that, it was four months. Then after that, it was seven months.'"
Smith said that he also pushed back on Trump's economic promises.
'I'm Bringing Trillions of Dollars Into This Country'
Trump is adamant he's going to make the U.S. richer.
"Then after that, you're telling us to wait until after the midterms, and then you're offering $5,000 to everybody who voted for the Republicans to go back into the House. I said, 'D-mn. That's a lot, Mr. President. I mean, come on,'" Smith said.
According to Smith, Trump didn't have much of an answer.
"He says, 'Do you not understand? Just wait for it. I'm bringing trillions of dollars into this country. Trillions, trillions.' I said, 'Where is it?' He said, 'You'll see; wait for it, wait for it,'" Smith said.
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Sunny Hostin described Trump as a 'malignant narcissist.'
Smith told the panel he wasn't impressed with Trump's response, which was when the president made a bold claim about himself.
"I said, 'Really? That's all you got to say?' He said, 'Absolutely, Stephen, do you understand? I'm the greatest president who's ever lived. Do you understand that?'" Smith said.
The View co-host Sunny Hostin then asked Smith whether he thought Trump, 80, really believed that.
"I feel he absolutely believes that. He absolutely positively believes that he is the greatest president," Smith said.
Hostin had a blunt response, saying that Smith was "describing a malignant narcissist."
