Only In A Deeply Sick Country (America) Can Rapists Can Be Rehabilitated Through Politics

Conor McGregor's "please forget I'm a sexual predator" tour.

Conor McGregor at the White House.

What better way for The White House to challenge the stereotype that the Irish are drunk, dimwitted criminals than by spending Saint Patrick’s Day hosting Irish MMA fighter Conor McGregor, who is a drunk, dimwitted criminal?

On Monday, the former UFC superstar held a press conference in the White House briefing room, met with Trump in the Oval Office, and decorated his social media with pictures from Washington, D.C. Back in January, McGregor attended Trump’s inauguration, but he was much more vocal on this trip to the American capital. Heaping the obsequious praise known to please the American president, McGregor drew parallels between the alleged “illegal immigration racket” in the United States and his native Ireland. He also asked for the U.S. to take care of its “little brother,” which is a peculiar thing to say about a country that long struggled to free itself from great-power dominion.

Much like the xenophobic dribble espoused by America’s Republican Party, McGregor’s claims come from an alternative reality. While Ireland has not entirely avoided anti-immigrant, far-right politics (there was a riot in Dublin in 2023), last year’s election disproves McGregor’s statement he was “speaking for the Irish people.” Following an uptick in support in June’s local election, hard-right Irish politicians predicted a “revolution” was coming in November. Taking inspiration from the MMA star, they talked a big game but ultimately got their teeth kicked down their throat. In the November general election, Irish voters ignored xenophobic candidates to keep the status quo in the Dáil (parliament). Fianna Fáil (centrist) and Fine Gael (center-right) won the most votes and kept their governing coalition, while Sinn Féin (socialist) led the opposition. None of these three parties have engaged in the anti-immigrant rhetoric of Conor McGregor or Donald Trump, which isn’t a surprise. According to RTE, only 6% of Irish voters listed immigration as their top issue, behind housing and homelessness (28%), cost of living (19%), healthcare (17%), and economic stability (9%).¹ To further illustrate the lack of seriousness from the fighter-turned-whiskey salesman, McGregor couldn’t even answer the most basic question about his political claims.

When asked by a reporter what he thought should happen to undocumented Irish immigrants in the U.S. — which is the first question any competent political actor would have expected and prepared for — McGregor panicked, looked around for the nearest Trump team ghoul to bail him out, and babbled nonsense about the countries being “siblings.”

Having not even considered this high-school-level debate question, it’s clear McGregor isn’t actually interested in politics. He’s an open racist, so I’m not surprised he dislikes immigrants, but he could have made that point at home. So, why is Conor McGregor speaking from behind the White House podium? Simple. He wants to rehabilitate his public image as a sex offender by becoming a political pundit. And as the second election of Donald Trump has shown, there’s no better way for a convicted rapist to regain fans than by courting the American right.