Oscar De La Hoya for president
By Eddie Alinea
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 12 Sep 2018
De La Hoya in the Olympics.
From an Olympic gold medalist representing the United States, to six-division world boxing champion and Hall of Famer, Oscar De La Hoya now wants to be the president of his country.
The head of his own promotional firm bearing his nickname ?Golden Boy,? De La Hoya told a group of media men while promoting the middleweight title rematch between Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin on Saturday that he has "real" interest in launching a presidential bid for the 2020 election.
"It's real," De La Hoya said as quoted by the Los Angeles Times. "That's the beauty of our nation. If Arnold [Schwarzenegger] can be governor, if [Donald] Trump can be president, then why can't a Mexican-American who won an Olympic gold medal, who's over 35 and a U.S. citizen, run for presidency?"
In a separade statement made to TMZ LIVE, the boxing legend says he's "very seriously" considering running for the highest office of the land ... and he's, in fact, already put together an exploratory team for the purpose.
Oscar says if his exploratory team comes back with good numbers, he'll make it official and begin his campaign.
Oscar admitted having no experience in politics, but pointed out, ?neither did Donald Trump.? Adding he believes strongly in standing for the national anthem
De La Hoya is no fan of President Trump, especially when during the previous campaign for the White House, Trump said:
?When Mexico sends its people, they?re not sending their best. ? They?re sending people that have lots of problems, and they?re bringing those problems?. They?re bringing drugs. They?re bringing crime. They?re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.?
The California-born De La Hoya, 45, who holds both Mexican and American citizenship, responded in a news conference: ?You know, it?s terrible, terrible what?s he saying, what he stands for. I?m shocked. I?m really shocked.?
?In this country, there?s 50 going on 60 million Latinos all across the board, and especially him running for president, how can he say something like that? How can he even think something like that? Or how can he even feel something like that?? De La Hoya added.
Nicknamed ?The Golden Boy,? De La Hoya represented the U.S. at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona bringing home no less than the gold medal.
"I've had literally, over the years, ever since I became a professional in boxing, I've had millions of people tell me, 'Look, why don't you represent? Why don't you stand up and have a bigger voice?' And obviously, the biggest voice you can have is being president."
De La Hoya, 45, said he began entertaining running for president "many years ago." He said he would run as a Democrat and that he "absolutely" has the financial backing to make a serious run.
One of the most popular fighter of his era, De La Hoya had much-publicized personal troubles, too, outside the ring, including infidelity and alcohol and substance abuse. He expressed confidence, however, that his potential bid would receive significant support.
"As I got older, I get wiser," he said. "And as I get wiser, I get smarter. And as I get smarter, I start to realize the millions and millions of people who've told me, 'Oscar, why don't you run for some kind of office? Because you can make a difference.?
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.
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