Posted in: Sports, TV, WWE | Tagged: donald trump, John Cena, the rock, Vince McMahon, wrestling

Vince McMahon Keeping in Touch with WWE Legends Rock, Cena, Trump

A new report claims Vince McMahon keeps in touch with three old friends since his scandal-plagued departure from WWE. One is a WWE Hall of Famer.

A lot has changed in WWE since Vince McMahon was ousted (for the second time) over sexual misconduct allegations as detailed in a bombshell lawsuit filed against the former WWE and TKO Chairman by ex-employee Janel Grant, and none of it for the worse. But while McMahon's rule over the company and the wrestling business has come to an end, the 78-year-old billionaire is still keeping in touch with some of the biggest names in the wrestling world, according to a report from NBC: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, John Cena, and Donald Trump.

McMahon, who denies the allegations against him but paid millions in NDA agreements to multiple women including Grant, "hasn't had any contact with company leaders and figureheads since he resigned," according to "insiders" credited in the report, though Johnson is a member of the TKO board and recently competed at WrestleMania XL. McMahon also presumably keeps in touch with his son-in-law, Triple H, though the report also does say "sources" told them McMahon hasn't discussed company business with Haitch, the current Chief Content Officer.

"This is an amazing week for us, and I just, at this point, don't even want to get bogged down in the negatives of it," said Haitch at a post Royal Rumble press conference in January during the same week Johnson joined the board of directors, the lawsuit dropped, McMahon resigned.

Cena, who, like Johnson, has a successful Hollywood career but recently returned to WWE for a short run and appeared at WrestleMania, tried to address the allegations against his former boss while straddling the proverbial fence.

"I'm a big advocate of love and friendship and honesty and communication. But in the same breath, I'm also a big advocate of accountability," said Cena on a Howard Stern Show appearance in February. "I think you explained it well of, if someone's behavior lies so far outside your value system, that the balance shifts, of like, man, I can't operate in a world where this works. That's the end result of being accountable. Right now, what I'm gonna do is love the person I love, be their friend, and by that, it means like, hey, I love you. You got a hill to climb."

Johnson has so far avoided substantially addressing the allegations, even while joining the TKO board of directors and taking a major on-screen role in the wake of McMahon's departure. In response to the report that Cena and Johnson, former in-ring rivals, are united in "keeping in touch" with McMahon, a spokesman for Janel Grant said:

It's shameful that Mr. Johnson and Mr. Cena would associate themselves with an individual with decades of allegations just like Janel's. Behind-the-scenes support is louder than any public statement ever could be.

As for Donald Trump, he's been a little busy lately with his own legal issues, which only means he and McMahon have even more in common. The longtime friends have maintained a personal and business relationship going back decades, and Trump is a member of the WWE Hall of Fame, beating both Johnson and Cena to the honor. McMahon's wife, Linda McMahon, served as a member of Trump's cabinet during his presidency, resigning to lead the America First Action Super PAC with the goal of reflecting Trump in 2020.

The NBC report says McMahon and Trump are in contact regularly, though a source told them they don't discuss their legal issues. That being said, in her biography of McMahon, Ringmaster: Vince McMahon and the Unmaking of America, author Josie Reisman wrote that McMahon "is said to be one of the only people whose calls Trump takes in private, forcing his retinue to leave the room so the two old chums can chat in confidence."

So what do they talk about? With McMahon recently finding himself with a lot of extra time on his hands, and a lot of money burning holes in his pockets from the sale of WWE and subsequent dumping of TKO stock, we'll go on record with a prediction: McMahon makes for a perfect running mate in the upcoming election. Trump/McMahon 2024. Call it a double main event ticket, because neither man seems likely to accept the "vice" presidential role. You're welcome, America.

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