Dennis Rodman appeared on CNN Tuesday during a heated interview in which he defended his "basketball diplomacy" trip to North Korea.
Chris Cuomo spoke with Rodman and his team of players from the capital city of the DPRK, Pyongyang on his morning program "New Day." The former NBA Hall of Famer grew visibly frustrated as Cuomo's line of questioning became more political.
Rodman and the team, which is comprised of such all-stars as Kenny Anderson, Cliff Robinson and Vin Baker, are scheduled to participate in a basketball game against a local North Korean lineup on January 8, the same day as leader Kim Jong-Un's birthday. Plans to move forward with the game - despite Rodman's benefactor backing out and many raised eyebrows from the public - came weeks after Kim's regime reportedly assassinated the leader's uncle for "anti-state, counterrevolutionary actions," and alleged excessive drug use and gambling.
But the team has insisted, and maintained during the interview, that their intention wasn't to make the trip a political one - instead, it was an effort to join two nations.
Cuomo asked Rodman whether he would question North Korean officials about Kenneth Bae, an American citizen currently being held in the Pyongyang for alleged crimes against the government. Rodman responded emotionally, his voice cracking as he pushed aside Charles D. Smith, who tried to console him.
"Kenneth Bae did one thing...If you understand what Kenneth Bae did. Do you understand what he did in this country? No, no, no, you tell me, you tell me. Why is he held captive here in this country, why?...I would love to speak on this," Rodman said, poking his finger at the camera while holding an unlit cigar. "You know, you've got 10 guys here, 10 guys here, they've left their families, they've left their damn families, to help this country, as in a sports venture. That's 10 guys, all these guys here, do anyone understand that? Christmas, New Year's..."
As Cuomo continued asking questions, Rodman became more agitated.
"Really? Really? I want to tell you one thing. People round the world, I wanna do one thing. You're the guy behind the mic right now. We're the guys here doing one thing," he said, adding that he and his team would be forced to endure serious abuse upon returning to the United States after the game. "One day, one day, this door is going to open because these 10 guys here, all of us...if we could open the door just a little bit for people to come here and do one thing."
