‘Who is Jenna Ellis?’ Simone Biles Epically Drops Trump Lawyer Over Tweet Calling the Gold Medalist a ‘Loser’

By Sarah RumpfJul 8th, 2022, 3:21 pm
 
President Joe Biden awards Simone Biles the Presidential Medal of Freedom

Alex Wong/Getty Images

Simone Biles dropped an epic retort to a petty tweet from former Trump lawyer Jenna Ellis that called the Olympic gold medalist a “loser,” bluntly asking “Who is Jenna Ellis? Asking for everyone.”

On Thursday, President Joe Biden awarded Biles with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, America’s highest civilian honor. A White House statement announcing the 2022 recipients highlighted how Biles “is the most decorated American gymnast in history, with a combined total of 32 Olympic and World Championship medals” and is “a prominent advocate for athletes’ mental health and safety, children in the foster care system, and victims of sexual assault.”

Biles’ gymnastic prowess was so great, there are four official gymnastic elements named after her, several of which she is the only woman to have ever successfully completed them in competition. The high degree of difficulty of these unique elements caused controversy within the gymnastics community, with critics complaining that the judges were watering down the scores awarded for Biles’ moves in order to deter less-skilled gymnasts from risking injury attempting them.

As for Biles herself, she’s always been adamant about putting safety first, citing that as her reason for withdrawing from multiple events during the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics. The high speed and height involved in her stunts meant that any error could leave her paralyzed or even cost her life, and Biles — 23 years old at the time and older than most other Olympic gymnasts — was having troubles maintaining her proprioception, her sense of where her body was in space and in which direction it was moving.

It’s a problem gymnasts refer to as “the twisties,” and Biles told reporters that as much as she recognized the honor of being able to compete in the Olympics, “at the end of the day, it’s like, we want to walk out of here, not be dragged out here on a stretcher.”

Biles was among the sexual assault victims of former USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar and cited the trauma from that experience as a factor in her decision to withdraw, along with the recent passing of a beloved aunt during the competition. She did end up winning a bronze medal on the balance beam, and said that medal “means more than all of the golds” because she had “pushed through” so many mental health challenges.

Despite all that, Ellis believes Biles is a loser. In a tweet Thursday night, Ellis mocked Biden for awarding “his presidential medals to fellow losers, Biles and Rapinoe,” referring to soccer player and Biles’ fellow Olympic gold medalist, Megan Rapinoe.

That tweet swiftly drew a vicious ratio, with many pointing out the athletes’ records and especially Biles’ own advocacy for foster children and other victims of abuse. Ellis’ own less-than-illustrious legal career — which includes getting fired as a low-level prosecutor handling traffic tickets and misdemeanor cases, calling herself a “law professor” for teaching pre-law classes at a small private Christian college that did not have an actual law school, and being one of the main characters in the “Kraken” legal team that lost over 60 cases attempting to overturn the 2020 election for former President Donald Trump — did not fare well in comparison.

Biles herself chimed in on Friday, mocking Ellis’ far lower name recognition. “[W]ho is Jenna Ellis?” Biles tweeted. “Asking for everyone.”

That tweet got a far more positive reception than Ellis’ had, including several references to Legally Blonde and Ellis’ own potential legal troubles.

Ellis doubled down on her bad take Friday, attacking Biles as someone who “selfishly quit Team USA” and condescendingly quoting one of the gymnast’s tweets with a comment, “baby stick to your landings and grow up.”

Unsurprisingly, that tweet didn’t go over very well either, both for its pettiness and the comment about not paying attention in “6th grade civics,” as Biles’ quoted tweet was factually correct that the U.S. Constitution was written in 1787, ratified in 1788, and became effective in 1789.

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Sarah Rumpf - Contributing Editor

Sarah Rumpf joined Mediaite in 2020 and is a Contributing Editor focusing on politics, law, and the media. A native Floridian, Sarah attended the University of Florida, graduating with a double major in Political Science and German, and earned her Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the UF College of Law. Sarah's writing has been featured at National Review, The Daily Beast, Reason, Law & Crime, Independent Journal Review, Texas Monthly, The Capitolist, Breitbart Texas, Townhall, RedState, The Orlando Sentinel, and the Austin-American Statesman, and her political commentary has led to appearances on the BBC, MSNBC, NewsNation, Fox 35 Orlando, Fox 7 Austin, The Young Turks, The Dean Obeidallah Show, and other television, radio, and podcast programs across the globe.