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Trump slams Olympian for expressing 'mixed emotions' about what's 'going on in the U.S.'

PBS NewsHour 11:45 AM UTC Mon February 09, 2026 Politics
Trump slams Olympian for expressing 'mixed emotions' about what's 'going on in the U.S.'

President Donald Trump said Sunday it's hard to cheer for American Olympians who are speaking out against his administration's policies.

READ MORE: Vance says the Olympics are 'one of the few things' that unite Americans

Asked at a news conference at the Milan Cortina Games how they feel representing the U.S. while ICE agents are detaining immigrants back home, freestyle skier Hunter Hess replied that he had mixed emotions: "If it aligns with my moral values, I feel like I'm representing it," Hess said. "Just because I'm wearing the flag doesn't mean I represent everything that's going on in the U.S."

"Hess, a real Loser, says he doesn't represent his Country in the current Winter Olympics. If that's the case, he shouldn't have tried out for the Team, and it's too bad he's on it," Trump wrote on his Truth Social account.

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Left: Hunter Hess in 2025. File photo by Denis Balibouse/ Reuters

By Howard Fendrich, Associated Press

By Giada Zampano, Niccolò Lupone, Associated Press

By Michelle L. Price, Associated Press

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