Nolte: Disgraced Jussie Smollett Still Claims to Be Victim of ‘MAGA Country!’ Trumpers Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images

The dumber-than-dumb People Magazine offered convicted hate-hoaxster Jussie Smollett an unchallenged environment to continue to spread his ugly and divisive hoax.

On January 29, 2019 — more than five freaken years ago — Smollett claimed he was the victim of a hate crime perpetrated by two white men at 2 A.M. in a freezing cold Chicago. The disgraced Empire star told the police (and the world) that these men asked if he was “that faggot Empire ni**er,” before beating him, looping a noose around his neck, and pouring bleach on him.

Oh, and then they shouted, “This is MAGA country!”

Gee, how lucky were these guys to be so prepared for a hate crime at 2 A.M. in an icy cold Chicago?

Of course, it was a hoax. Police say Smollett invented the whole thing for attention and to get a bump in his Empire salary. Instead, he was fired by Empire and ultimately convicted of five counts of felony disorderly conduct. This came with a $130,160 fine and a 150-day jail sentence. He served only six days before being released on appeal in March of 2024.

If his conviction is not overturned, Smollett may have to finish those other 144 days, which this entitled, spoiled brat deserves.

Smollett is 42 years old and instead of admitting he did something stupid, that he regrets it, and serve his time, he continues to this very day to stand by and be defined by a reprehensible lie. Here he is in the latest People:

Despite the narrative he says so many have assumed, Smollett maintains his innocence to this day.

“I was numb,” he says, recalling the incident to PEOPLE. “I didn’t know how to connect the dots. I really genuinely did not know. I couldn’t make sense of what was going on, and I couldn’t make sense of what people were actually thinking … what exactly do they think happened? I couldn’t put two and two together.”

There’s absolutely no journalism here. Why not ask him why his two black friends claim Smollett paid them to beat him up on the street posing as two Trump supporters? Challenge him a little bit. Instead, he’s allowed to pose as a victim and spout this nonsense:

“I have a more adult grown-up way of talking about it now, but at the same time, my views have not changed,” he says, adding that he now approaches things with a “gentler” touch. “My heart has not shifted at all. I’m the same man that I was and will always be this way. If tons of people are listening to you, you should say something worth them hearing.”

Smollett appears to have found a second career producing and directing TV movies about gay men for BET. Good for him. No one wants to deny him a living. We all deserve a second chance. But this guy does not deserve forgiveness or to be allowed to move on until he admits what he did and asks for forgiveness. The egomaniac is not contrite at all. He’s still spreading his toxic lie, which makes him a disgrace.

Living a lie is exhausting. Most of us learn that as kids. Fess up. Get it behind you. Move on. Life is so much simpler that way.

John Nolte’s first and last novel, Borrowed Time, is winning five-star raves from everyday readers. You can read an excerpt here and an in-depth review here. Also available in hardcover and on Kindle and Audiobook. 

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