On Friday morning, President Trump said whether the Cleveland Cavaliers or the Golden State Warriors win the NBA championship, they will not be receiving an invitation to the White House (Spoiler alert: Golden State is going to win).
The announcement came shortly after the stars of both teams who are fighting for the title, Steph Curry of Golden State and LeBron James of Cleveland, said their teams would not go if invited. Perhaps this and the Philadelphia Eagles lack of interest in coming to the White House earlier in the week should lead Trump to a realization: there’s no reason why this tradition needs to continue.
The whole practice seems like it’s out of 12th-century England. The sitting president is a democratically elected official, not the king of the country. After teams win a sports championship, why is it that they “earn” an invite to meet the president? The president isn’t supposed to be a God-like figure; whoever is in the office is just the head of one of three branches of government. They are not a person worth worshiping or seeking approval from, even for those who agree with their policies. If they were, then people like Bill Clinton, John F. Kennedy, and Trump, who have engaged in extramarital affairs, probably wouldn’t be the men for the job.
Sure, presidents meet with many people during their White House reigns, but there is no governmental significance to a photo-op with a Super Bowl quarterback or the star forward of an NBA team. The photo with everyone on the team is just a small piece of PR for whatever politician is pictured.
The situation is also a lose-lose for the players. It puts them in an awkward spot of having to choose whether or not they want to go and answering questions about it, politicizing them when there is no reason to do so. Skip the White House visit and one side will complain. However, if one visits the White House and looks happy to be there the criticism and disappointment from left-wing fans will come. This happened to Houston Astros outfielder Josh Reddick earlier this year, who didn’t even tweet anything overtly political.
This hurts my heart… My kids and I were such fans. ?? How could you do this.
— Mollees (@Mollee1703) March 12, 2018
On the bright side, it’s not possible for me to respect Josh Reddick any less than I already did. https://t.co/oTFu3S94IV
— #DoodleYourFriend ? (@dodgerdudel) March 12, 2018
You lost thousands of fans today.
— Bobby Aguilera (@BobbyAguilera) March 12, 2018
And just like that..I’ve decided to unfollow my first sports player.
— Steven James (@WhadHeSay85) March 12, 2018
Prior to Trump’s White House reign, the mainstream media buried players who dared not visit. After the Boston Bruins won the Stanley Cup in 2011, their goaltender, Tim Thomas, decided to skip his team’s White House visit because he did not like then-President Barack Obama. He was attacked by the mainstream media. Sports Illustrated said he picked the “wrong place and time” to make a political statement; ESPN declared that “Tim Thomas put himself above the team”; and the Boston Globe said “Yesterday was not about politics and government until Thomas made it about politics and government.”
There are many problems in the country at the moment. A trade war is escalating. The country has been engaged in several armed conflicts overseas for the past 17 years. Plus, a recession could be coming. Whether or not LeBron James wants a picture with the sitting president – if he can ever beat the Warriors again – should be the least of the country’s worries. After all, it’s not like an endorsement from James would make a difference in Ohio.
The president has more important tasks to do than take a photo with athletes. It’s time to end this unnecessary tradition.
