TPM Live: Trump, the Right, and Martial Arts

US President Donald Trump (L) gestures at Kayla Harrison after defeating Julianna Pena in the UFC women's bantamweight championship bout a UFC 316 event, headlined by a rematch between Georgian mixed martial artist M... US President Donald Trump (L) gestures at Kayla Harrison after defeating Julianna Pena in the UFC women's bantamweight championship bout a UFC 316 event, headlined by a rematch between Georgian mixed martial artist Merab Dvalishvili and US mixed martial artist Sean O'Malley, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on June 7, 2025. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP) (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images) MORE LESS

President Donald Trump is planning to bring the UFC into the White House later this year. But the brawl on the South Lawn is not the only way mixed martial arts has become a part of his administration.

Trump, like many other right-wing leaders before him, has a long history with combat sports.

In a 3 p.m. Substack Live, we’ll take a look at how martial arts has become right coded. It’s a cultural phenomenon with troubling effects that stretch from D.C., to Saudi Arabia, and the white supremacist fringe. Join here.