The chance to have his name on an airport. That must have been the reason young Tim Howard put in so many hours on the pitch.
A White House petition created last night wants to make that happen. The petition wants to change the name of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) to “Tim Howard National Airport.”
“Whereas Tim Howard has shown himself to be a national treasure, Minister of Defense, Friend of Joe Biden, and the holder for the record of most saves in a World Cup match,” the petition reads. “Therefore, we politely request that we rename the airport to recognize his accomplishments.”
No one can dispute Howard’s incredible saves Tuesday evening. Howard’s 16 stops against Belgium were the most in a World Cup game since 1966, the year the tournament began keeping track of such records. The beard makes him even more of a fan favorite.
But what tips the petition over the top is its choice of airport. Reagan?
Why? What’d he do wrong?
The Gipper may have never saved a shot on goal, but he saved this country from much worse, and did this in the process:
The petition could have at least chosen to rename Reagan airport’s DC-area sibling, Dulles International. Its namesake is John Foster Dulles.
Who?
Only senior citizens on board and the historically savvy remember the airport’s namesake as the Secretary of State for Dwight Eisenhower. (Ed: The airport itself, a traveler’s nightmare, could use a tweak for at least morale’s sake. “Tim Howard International” — change we can believe in, and fly on.)
Even American airports like Manokotak or Bemidji could use a simpler name like “Tim Howard.”
There are 5,170 public airports in the U.S., but the petition chose Reagan. Its motives deserve some skepticism. It makes no sense to rename the airport that honors the best president since World War II, as chosen by the American people.
Heck, why not rename “Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport” in Arkansas?
