President Trump thrust the spotlight onto comedian Theo Von while in Qatar on Thursday, one day after news the podcaster recently assaulted a man at a Nashville bar.
Trump on Thursday called for troops at the Al Udeid Air Base to “clap for a man who is a great influencer,” The Daily Beast reports.
Von, who was in the audience, is one of several podcasters who helped the president reach young male voters in the lead-up to the November election.
The president informed the crowd that his 19-year-old son, Barron, who “knew [Von] very well” was the first to introduce him to the “This Past Weekend” host and encouraged his dad to sit down for an interview on the manosphere podcast.
It was the teen’s urging that ultimately convinced Trump, he said, adding to soldiers’ applause.
“We had a good time,” Trump said. “We had like 270 million people that listened, so you know what? I think Barron was right. Thank you for being here, Theo.”
In addition to attending Trump’s inauguration earlier this year, Von — who’s currently on his Return of the Rat tour — recently had dinner with Trump’s daughter Ivanka and husband Jared Kushner, when he performed in Miami.
Von’s appearance in Qatar comes one day after TMZ obtained footage showing Von grabbing the throat of a man at The Twelve Thirty Club in Nashville earlier this month.
While it’s unclear what exactly preceded the altercation, sources told the outlet the man was with a group who’d been repeatedly harassing Von and using threatening language.
Local authorities confirmed to the Daily News the incident was investigated by police and that “no action [will be] taken concerning the complaint” of misdemeanor assault.
