Donald Trump truly is the culture war president.
Sure, former President Barack Obama was knee deep in social media “influencers” and multibillionaire celebrities. But when it comes to keeping the culture war fights burning red hot, 44 doesn’t hold a candle to 45.
The White House rescinded its invite to the Philadelphia Eagles Monday evening, claiming in an aggressive statement that the cancellation is due in part to the president’s position that players ought to stand during the performance of the national anthem.
White House officials also claim the team tried to bait-and-switch them with the photo-op, according to Politico’s Annie Karni.
The team supposedly submitted the names of 70-plus individuals last Thursday, she said. Then, on Friday, the Eagles reportedly tried to reschedule the entire event so that it would overlap with Trump’s Singapore trip.
Later, on Monday, “they said the group avail on pre-planned date [would] be two or three players [plus owner and mascot],” Karni reported.
This is on top of the fact that certain Eagles players had already announced their plans to boycott the event honoring their Super Bowl victory.
On Monday, the White House said, “No thanks.”
“The Philadelphia Eagles are unable to come to the White House with their full team to be celebrated tomorrow. They disagree with their President because he insists that they proudly stand for the National Anthem, hand on heart, in honor of the great men and women of our military and the people of our country,” read a statement published Monday.
It added, “The Eagles wanted to send a smaller delegation, but the 1,000 fans planning to attend the event deserve better. These fans are still invited to the White House to be part of a different type of ceremony — one that will honor our great country, pay tribute to the heroes who fight to protect it, and loudly and proudly play the National Anthem. I will be there at 3:00 p.m. with the United States Marine Band and the United States Army Chorus to celebrate America.”
It’s worth noting here that not a single member of Eagles’ championship winning team took a knee last season during the performance of the national anthem. Not even one.
[Related: Fox News apologizes for images falsely suggesting Eagles players kneeled during national anthem]
Here’s the thing, though: It doesn’t matter whether the Eagles took a knee or not last season. The president’s team is falling back on an issue that works well for them, because this isn’t about a canceled White House photo-op. This is about winning the war.
Trump and his cohort have already scored several wins in the ongoing fight against protesting NFL players. Monday’s statement is just a victory lap.
The league announced earlier this year that players who are on the field during the performance of the anthem will be required to “stand and show respect for the flag and the Anthem,” adding that clubs will be fined based on whether their employees are in violation of the rule.
As a compromise, however, players will have the option to remain in the locker room during the anthem. So, if a player wants to protest, they may do so in the privacy of their locker room or “in a similar location off the field” until the completion of the anthem.
This league announcement was a major win for Trump. But it’s not enough. He wants total victory. Canceling the Eagles’ appearance with statement underscoring the president’s opposition to the protests is the equivalent of bayoneting the wounded survivors on the battlefield.
Trump and his team don’t want to just to push back. They want a march to the sea.
This is part of Trump’s allure to the right. Many who voted for him said they did so because they wanted someone who “fights.” Broadly translated, they wanted someone to punch just as hard – if not harder – as the other side.
If sticking it to the other guy is what you want in a president, claiming scalp after scalp and victory after victory in the culture wars, Trump is everything you wanted and more.
He doesn’t want to win just a few battles. He wants the whole thing.
