Claim: “It makes me so proud as vice president of the United States to go around the world talking to folks about a variety of issues, and one of the subjects that does come up is the WNBA. [The world] is watching what you guys are doing, lifting up the excellence of the finest athletes in the world.”
Who said it: Vice President Kamala Harris, in a pep talk to the Phoenix Mercury before convicted drug smuggler Brittney Griner made her WNBA regular season debut against the Los Angeles Sparks.
Context: Despite the vice president’s inspiring speech, the Mercury went on to lose by 23 points in front of about 10,000 fans at Crypto.com Arena—slightly more than 50 percent of the stadium’s capacity.
Analysis: Common sense suggests Harris was spewing bulls—t out of her mouth. There’s just no way this is true. No one outside the mainstream media and liberal establishment in the United States has ever wanted to talk about the WNBA.
Some world leaders might have wondered why the United States decided to free convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout, aka the “Merchant of Death,” in exchange for Griner’s release from a Russian prison, but they definitely aren’t “watching what [the WNBA is] doing.”
The same is true of almost every single person in America. In 2022, for example, the WNBA averaged a record-breaking 379,000 viewers per game during the regular season. That’s significantly lower than the (embarrassingly low) number of viewers (473,000) who still watch CNN during prime time.
Verdict: We rate this claim 4 Flaming Clintons.
Why Kamala Harris’ WNBA Claim is False
Vice President Kamala Harris recently claimed that the world is watching the WNBA and that people around the world are talking about the league. However, this claim is simply not true. Despite the mainstream media and liberal establishment’s attempts to push the WNBA into the spotlight, the league remains largely ignored by the general public.
The Numbers Don’t Lie
According to recent TV ratings, the WNBA averaged only 379,000 viewers per game during the 2022 regular season. This is significantly lower than the number of viewers who still watch CNN during prime time. It’s clear that the WNBA is not the global phenomenon that Kamala Harris would have us believe.
Conclusion
While Kamala Harris may have had good intentions in her pep talk to the Phoenix Mercury, her claim about the WNBA is simply not true. We rate her claim 4 Flaming Clintons.
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