Kaepernick: Van Jones tried to broker a meeting between Trump, former QB

Kaepernick Says Van Jones Reached Out About Possible Trump Meeting

Provpnadvice.com – Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick says he quickly declined an invitation connected to a proposed meeting with President Trump during Trump’s first administration, describing the outreach as an effort to draw him into a political event he did not view as genuine.

Kaepernick discussed the episode during an appearance on a MediasTouch podcast with host Ben Meiselas. The conversation centered on a “Black Summit” to which Kaepernick said he had been invited while Trump was serving his first term.

He said the invitation was relayed through CNN analyst Van Jones, a former adviser in the Obama administration who previously served as chief executive of the criminal-justice reform organization REFORM Alliance. Kaepernick said he did not pursue details once the opportunity was presented.

“What I’ve learned over the years is there is going to be a constant attempt to be able to co-opt people who are trying to work for the benefit of the people,” Kaepernick said.

He characterized the proposed engagement as part of that broader pattern. In his view, the event risked serving as a public display of outreach without reflecting meaningful support for Black Americans or for the issues he had raised through his activism.

“I don’t know the details around it because, candidly, as soon it came up as ‘Hey, here is the opportunity,’ it was immediately rejected,” he said.

A relationship shaped by protest and public criticism

The account comes against the backdrop of Kaepernick’s long and contentious history with Trump. During the 2016 NFL season, Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem to protest racial injustice and police brutality. The action became one of the most visible athlete protests in modern American sports and sparked fierce debate across the country.

Trump repeatedly criticized players who protested during the anthem. At the time, he said that disrespecting the country, flag or anthem was unacceptable, and he voiced support for the NFL taking action against Kaepernick over his protest.

For Kaepernick, those public comments made a later invitation to participate in a Trump-related gathering difficult to separate from the president’s earlier rhetoric. He said the overture appeared to conflict with what he viewed as Trump’s effort to damage his standing in professional football.

“This is after him going out publicly and trying to target me in my employment,” Kaepernick said.

Kaepernick argued that the invitation could have created the impression that Trump was working on behalf of Black people. He rejected that interpretation, saying the historical record led him to a different conclusion.

“A facade that he’s working for Black people or trying to be in the benefit of Black people,” Kaepernick said, adding that “history shows otherwise.”

Questions raised about reform and political access

Kaepernick also pointed to relationships involving Trump and REFORM Alliance, where Jones had formerly been CEO. The organization focuses on changing the probation and parole systems. Kaepernick raised concerns about how high-profile reform work, political access and presidential clemency can intersect.

“Ultimately what we see is on the other side of that, you know, pardons being handed out, and we’re seeing those pay-for-play right now,” Kaepernick said.

His remarks reflect a broader skepticism about prominent political initiatives that seek the involvement of activists or public figures. Invitations to meetings can carry symbolic importance, but Kaepernick’s comments suggest he believes participation should be judged by the policies, prior actions and power dynamics surrounding it rather than by the event itself.

Jones was a high-profile political commentator and adviser before his work with REFORM Alliance. Kaepernick did not provide further details about what a meeting or summit would have involved, and his description made clear that he chose not to explore the offer.

Kaepernick’s NFL absence remains central to the discussion

Kaepernick has not appeared in an NFL game since March 2017, when he opted out of his contract with the San Francisco 49ers. He has not formally announced his retirement from football.

After leaving the 49ers, Kaepernick filed a grievance alleging that NFL team owners had coordinated to keep him from signing with another club. The legal action named Trump and then-Vice President Mike Pence as a “colluding force” in preventing him from obtaining a new NFL contract.

The case was settled in 2019 for less than $10 million. The agreement did not return Kaepernick to an NFL roster, but the dispute became a defining part of the conversation around his career and the consequences of his protest.

That same year, Trump said he would “love” to see Kaepernick return to the league, while adding that NFL owners would sign him if they believed he was good enough. The statement contrasted with Trump’s earlier attacks on Kaepernick’s anthem protest and remains part of the complicated public record between the former quarterback and the president.

Years after his last NFL appearance, Kaepernick’s comments underscore how his activism, football career and political scrutiny remain closely connected. His decision to reject the proposed Trump meeting was presented not as an isolated choice, but as one shaped by the public conflict that followed his protest and by his doubts about the purpose behind the outreach.