'Pawn Stars' Rick Harrison praises Trump, rips 'complicit' politicians over fentanyl crisis after son’s death
"Pawn Stars" TV personality Rick Harrison praised Donald Trump after recently meeting with the former president. Harrison, who recently lost his son following an overdose, slammed politicians and said they are "complicit" in the fentanyl crisis.
Rick Harrison and President Donald Trump have a special bond.
The "Pawn Stars" personality admitted in an interview on "In Depth with Graham Bensinger" that he once received an apology from President Trump after a backstage mishap with Secret Service.
Harrison, a longtime conservative, also suggested politics may be in his near future after years of denying any political ambition.
‘PAWN STARS’ BOSS RICK HARRISON QUESTIONS IF HE COULD HAVE SAVED SON FROM FENTANYL OVERDOSE
"Pawn Stars" personality Rick Harrison remembered a time when President Donald Trump apologized to him. (Getty Images)
The television star remembered a time when President Trump called to say he was "sorry" after Harrison wasn't allowed backstage at a rally.
"So this is kind of crazy," he told Bensinger. "So this is in 2018, he's having a rally here in town for … someone running for Congress and Senate. And they wanted me to announce him at the rally. So I show up with my son Jake and my daughter Serena, White House staff goes, ‘Hey Rick, how's it going? Come on, come this way.’"
Just as quickly as they made their way back, the family was denied entrance to the event.
"We go to backstage and Secret Service goes, ‘He's not on the list,'" Harrison remembered. "And they're going like, ‘But it's Rick Harrison.’ And his friend's like, ‘Not on the list. Doesn't matter.’ And I'm literally trying to call a U.S. senator, some other people, some congressman. I can't get a hold of anybody.
"Pawn Stars" Rick Harrison is a longtime supporter of President Donald Trump. (Getty Images)
"Secret Service throws me into the public and I am getting mobbed. And we had to leave. We could not stay there. And I'm f----ng pissed."
Not only was Harrison slightly embarrassed, he was upset to disappoint his son, who was excited to tell his friends he was meeting the president.
"So I get a block from the house and then Senator Heller's number pops up in my truck, and I'm like, Senator Heller knows I have no filter," Harrison said. "So the first words out of his mouth, he's like, ‘Rick, before you say a word, the President of the United States would like to talk to you.’"
Harrison added, "And the first words out of Trump's mouth were, ‘Rick, I am really sorry. This is all my fault, because my White House staff, they work for me. They screwed up. That makes it my fault. I'm sorry. They should have informed the Secret Service. So, I'm sorry, will you please come back down to the convention center? We'll try and make this happen.’
"And you're not going to tell the president of the United States ‘no,’ right?," Harrison said.
"The first words out of Trump's mouth were, ‘Rick, I am really sorry. This is all my fault, because my White House staff, they work for me. They screwed up. That makes it my fault. I'm sorry."?
Harrison stumped for the Trump/Vance ticket in 2024. (Patrick T. Fallon)
The longtime TV star has thwarted political ambitions, but admitted he might be ready for a new gig.
"Give it a few years. I might," he said when asked about running for governor. "I know I can't completely change the world, but I would like to leave it in a better place. Just changed a little bit, to make it a little bit better.
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"I do a lot of work with charity work and stuff like that. I'm proud of that. So maybe. I think I would do a good job at it."
"I know I can't completely change the world, but I would like to leave it in a better place. Just changed a little bit, to make it a little bit better."?
Harrison previously praised President Trump after the pair met following the loss of Harrison's son, Adam, who died of a fentanyl overdose in 2024.
Harrison owns and operates the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Ronda Churchill)
The reality star both praised Trump and blasted politicians during the previous administration for being "complicit" in fentanyl deaths.
"He's an incredible individual," Harrison said of Trump, 77. "He wants to do something about this. There's so many different places you have to start at, all at once, but one of the major ones is get the damn stuff out of the country and stop making it so cheap to get high."
Harrison guessed that "anybody" could afford a fentanyl pill due to the easily accessible market, but suggested, "Let's start arresting the people selling it, arresting the people bringing it over the border, close down the border, make it really expensive. Let's make a fentanyl death rare."
He added, "It's insane because they're letting it happen. They're literally letting it happen. They're not doing anything about it. So they're complicit in all these deaths."
WATCH: ‘PAWN STARS’ RICK HARRISON RIPS POLITICIANS OVER FENTANYL CRISIS AFTER SON'S DEATH: ‘ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING’
Harrison told Fox News Digital that he found the current border policy "absolutely ridiculous" and blamed politicians for what he described as their inaction to prevent drugs from entering the country.
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"Nothing is getting done about it," Harrison said. "It's the equivalent of a 737 [airplane] loaded with passengers crashing every single day. That's how many people die from it. And, you know, the politicians don't want to talk about it. The news doesn't want to talk about it."
"A big part of is politics. I mean, we know where it's all coming from. It's all coming right across the border, and they won't do anything about it. I mean, they're doing nothing."
On Jan. 19, 2024, Adam was found dead at a guesthouse in the Las Vegas area, according to an incident report obtained by the New York Post. Adam was living in the guesthouse for two weeks before his death, per the report.
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