Jim Brown, Ray Lewis talk of 'fantastic' meeting with Trump

Jim Brown and Ray Lewis talk to reporters following a meeting with President-Elect Donald J. Trump

Story by The Hill
Written by Ben Kamisar

President-Elect Donald Trump met Tuesday with former football superstars Jim Brown and Ray Lewis to talk about curbing gang violence.

Brown and Lewis praised the President-Elect after the meeting at Trump Tower. They said they primarily spoke to Trump about Brown's Amer-I-Can philanthropy, which aims to keep kids away from gang violence.

"We couldn't have had a better meeting," Brown said.

"The graciousness, the intelligence, the reception we got was fantastic."

Former "Apprentice" star Omarosa Manigault and Cleveland Pastor Darrell Scott, two of Trump's most prominent Black supporters, sat in on the meeting. Scott told reporters that the President-Elect gave a "verbal commitment" to merge Brown's program with the Trump administration.

Throughout the campaign's closing stretch, Trump make direct appeals to the Black community, promising that he would help make their communities safer as president.

Brown and Lewis were superstars in the NFL and both won the MVP award and the league championship.

Lewis, who played for the Baltimore Ravens, told reporters that Trump is committed to "helping us change what hasn't been changed." He praised the Amer-I-Can program and said he supports Trump's pick to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Ben Carson.

"What we believe, with the Trump administration, is if we can combine these two powers of coming together, forget Black and White. Black or White is irrelevant," he said.

"The bottom line is job creation and economic development in these urban areas to change the whole scheme of what our kids see."

The Athletes' appearance at Trump Tower came hours after another major celebrity, musician Kanye West, met with the President-Elect.