Article snippet: Mariano Rivera, the star Yankees pitcher who was on Fox News on Wednesday. Rivera’s “Fox & Friends” appearance came after an article in The Daily Beast by Robert Silverman published Sunday excoriated him for his right-wing politics. The former Yankees reliever, who hails from Panama, is a vocal evangelical Christian and a pro-Israel advocate, the piece states. “And over the past three years, he’s also served at the pleasure of a racist president, taken part in thinly veiled propaganda on behalf of a far-right government in Israel, and gotten chummy with outright bigots and apocalyptic loons,” Silverman wrote. When asked about the article during the interview Wednesday, “Fox & Friends” cohost Brian Kilmeade said Rivera hadn’t known about the piece until that day, and asked Rivera what he thought about the article. “President Trump, to me, he was a friend of mine before he became the president,” Rivera replied. “So I mean, because he’s president, I will turn my back on him? No. I respect him. I respect what he does. I believe he’s doing the best for the United States of America.” “So you are a Trump fan?” Kilmeade asked. “I’m his friend,” Rivera replied. “When it comes to Israel, as a Christian — my savior, Jesus Christ, he is a Jew. So how am I going to turn my back and say I won’t support Israel?” “So your message to the writer is?” Kilmeade asked. “Hey, you have the power to say whatever you want to say. But that won’t change my position. That won’t cha... Link to the full article to read more