Trump touts standing for national anthem at Celebration of America event

President Donald Trump made no mention of the absent Philadelphia Eagles at his Celebration of America event but did talk about why Americans should stand for the national anthem in his less than five minutes worth of remarks. 

‘We love our flag and stand for our national anthem,’ Trump said to great applause from the crowd on the South Lawn of the White House.

‘We stand to honor our military and to honor country and to honor the fallen heroes who never made it back home.’ 

Shortly before he spoke his press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders accused the team of pulling off a ‘political stunt.’ 

‘If this wasn’t a political stunt by the Eagles franchise then they wouldn’t have committed to attend the event and then backed out,’ she said in her Tuesday press briefing.

The Celebration of America event, which lasted approximately 10 minutes, began with the singing of the ‘Star Spangled Banner.’  

A heckler was heard shouting after the singing ended. The words were muffled as the crowd booed him down although some reports said the person was protesting the Eagles being disinvited from the White House. The heckler was reportedly escorted out.

Trump spent most of his Celebration of America remarks bragging about how ‘we’re doing great’ and touted the country’s economic record. 

He also praised the crowd.’It’s even bigger than we anticipated.’ 

After the event concluded a group of young men from Philadelphia walked by the press standing, carrying a Carson Wentz jersey and shouting praise for the Eagles.  

President Donald Trump holds his hand over his heart and sings the National Anthem along with members of the U.S. military at the ‘celebration of America’

The White House defended disinviting the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles

The White House defended disinviting the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders accused the team of a 'political stunt'

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders accused the team of a ‘political stunt’

The Marine Corp band in their bright red uniforms were on the south balcony of the White House on a bright, sunny Tuesday in Washington D.C.

The event began with a military chorus singing ‘America the Beautiful’ and concluded with ‘God Bless America.’ 

Sanders defended the White House disinviting the team in her Tuesday briefing.

‘The Eagles made the commitment to come and to be part of that event well after the president had established his feelings in regards to the National Anthem.’  

The White House earlier on Tuesday accused the Eagles of deciding to ‘abandon their fans’ by not sending the full team to the celebration for the Super Bowl champions.

But the official statement made no mention of Trump’s stated reasoning for disinviting the team: that they refused to stand for the national anthem.

Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders released a lengthy statement Tuesday morning that offered a confusing timeline of what ultimately led to the team’s disinvitation to the White House, blaming a small delegation of players who would attend instead of the entire team.

The new statement didn’t acknowledge the president’s stated reason for the disinvite, which he said was because the team disagreed with him on standing for the national anthem.

It is unclear whether that is true – none of its players kneeled during the 2017-18 season and post-season. 

The White House slammed the Philadelphia Eagles for deciding to 'abandon their fans' by not sending the full team to the White House celebration

The White House slammed the Philadelphia Eagles for deciding to ‘abandon their fans’ by not sending the full team to the White House celebration

President Donald Trump is hosting a 'Celebration of America' on Tuesday as a patriotic stick-in-the-eye to the Philadelphia Eagles after most of the Super Bowl championship team planned to boycott his congratulatory reception

President Donald Trump is hosting a ‘Celebration of America’ on Tuesday as a patriotic stick-in-the-eye to the Philadelphia Eagles after most of the Super Bowl championship team planned to boycott his congratulatory reception

Fewer than 10 Eagles players were expected to attend the White House celebration

Fewer than 10 Eagles players were expected to attend the White House celebration

Sanders said the team had requested a different date for the event, which would have been during President Donald Trump’s scheduled June 12 summit with North Korea President Kim Jung-Un, because many players would not be in attendance.

She noted the original discussions for the event started in February, when the team accepted an invitation for June 5 to celebrate their victory in Super Bowl LII.

On Thursday of last week, according to Sanders, the team ‘notified the White House of 81 individuals, including players, coaches, management, and support personnel, who would attend the event.’

She aded: ‘These individuals, along with more than 1,000 Eagles fans, were scheduled to attend the event.’

However, on Friday the team requested the new date citing a small number of players attending, she said. At that point the summit with Kim was back on after Trump had cancelled it. 

‘The White House, despite sensing a lack of good faith,’ Sanders said, ‘nonetheless attempted to work with the Eagles over the weekend to change the event format that could accommodate a smaller group of players. 

‘Unfortunately, the Eagles offered to send only a tiny handful of representatives, while making clear that the great majority of players would not attend the event, despite planning to be in D.C. today. In other words, the vast majority of the Eagles team decided to abandon their fans.’

She said it was because of the Eagles’ players decision to boycott the White House disinvited the team and changed it to a celebration of America.

‘Upon learning these facts, the President decided to change the event so that it would be a celebration of the American flag with Eagles fans and performances by United States Marine Band and the United States Army Chorus,’ Sanders said.

However Trump issued a statement Monday night blaming the incident on the players refusing to stand for the national anthem, a war he has been waging on the National Football League and players during the past season.

‘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,’ Trump said in a statement released by the White House Monday night.

Eagles players did not kneel in protest at any point during the regular season. 

‘The Eagles wanted to send a smaller delegation, but the 1,000 fans planning to attend the event deserve better,’ he said.  

The president called off the Eagles’ planned 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue victory lap after he learned fewer than 10 players were expected to attend. Previous NFL appearances have included entire 53-man rosters plus a complement of coaches and executives. 

Malcolm Jenkins #27 and Ron Brooks #33 of the  Eagles raise their fists in protest during the national anthem before a game last year. Trump disinvited the team from the White House event rather than see a tiny contingent show up

Malcolm Jenkins #27 and Ron Brooks #33 of the Eagles raise their fists in protest during the national anthem before a game last year. Trump disinvited the team from the White House event rather than see a tiny contingent show up

The president mocked the NFL, tweeting: '[N]o escaping to Locker Rooms!'

The president mocked the NFL, tweeting: ‘[N]o escaping to Locker Rooms!’

A notable exception was Patriots quarterback Tom Brady’s absence at his team’s April 2017 White House celebration for their last year’s Super Bowl win. Brady said he was at the side of his ailing mother although a few other Patriot players skipped the event.

Many of the Eagles players objected to Trump’s oft-stated position that it’s disrespectful and outrageous for millionaire athletes to kneel or sit while the Anthem is played before games. The NFL is adopting a new policy this year, telling teams they can keep players in their locker rooms for the song in order to side-step controversy and fines for protesting. 

Twisting the knife on Tuesday, the White House replaced the football reception with a patriotic ‘Celebration of America,’ featuring the U.S. Marine Corps band and the Army Chorus.  

‘We will proudly be playing the National Anthem and other wonderful music celebrating our Country today at 3 P.M.’ Trump tweeted. 

‘Honoring America! NFL, no escaping to Locker Rooms!’

In a followup message, he pointed out that the Eagles have been the only high-profile team to decline his invitation in large numbers.   

‘We have had many Championship teams recently at the White House including the Chicago Cubs, Houston Astros, Pittsburgh Penguins, New England Patriots, Alabama and Clemson National Champions, and many others,’ he wrote. ‘National Anthem & more great music today at 3:00 P.M.’

A half-hour later he added to that list, remembering that auto racing is a sport.

‘@NASCAR and Champion @MartinTruex_Jr were recently at the White House. It was a great day for a great sport!’ Trump tweeted.

NASCAR is a major fascination in the deep south, a reliable Trump political stronghold.

Philadelphia, by contrast, is the center of a metropolitan area that broadly supported Hillary Clinton in 2016. 

And NASCAR too: Trump let a half-hour go by before adding stock car racing to his list of sports that have been represented at the White House during his administration

And NASCAR too: Trump let a half-hour go by before adding stock car racing to his list of sports that have been represented at the White House during his administration

Trump offered his podium to 2017 NASCAR Cup champion Martin Truex Jr., during a ceremony for him and his racing team on the South Lawn of the White House on May 21

Trump offered his podium to 2017 NASCAR Cup champion Martin Truex Jr., during a ceremony for him and his racing team on the South Lawn of the White House on May 21

The Eagles put out a statement after their disinvite, thanking the ‘entire Eagles community.’

‘It has been incredibly thrilling to celebrate our first Super Bowl Championship,’ the statement read. ‘Watching the entire Eagles community come together has been an inspiration. We are truly grateful for all of the support we have received and we are looking forward to continuing our preparations for the 2018 season.’ 

A small number of NFL players began kneeling during the anthem during the 2016 season to protest what they said was unjust police shootings of unarmed black men.

Trump took a swipe at the league’s resulting policy change on Monday night: ‘Staying in the Locker Room for the playing of our National Anthem is as disrespectful to our country as kneeling. Sorry!’ 

He added in a statement that some of the Eagles ‘disagree with their President because he insists that they proudly stand for the National Anthem, hand on heart.

He said that while the team wanted to send a small delegation, ‘the 1,000 fans planning to attend the event deserve better.’ 

Philadelphia’s mayor, Democrat Jim Kenney, issued a statement praising the Eagles as ‘players who stand up for the causes they believe in’ and blasting Trump for withdrawing their invitation.’

‘Disinviting them from the White House only proves that our President is not a true patriot, but a fragile egomaniac obsessed with crowd size and afraid of the embarrassment of throwing a party to which no one wants to attend,’ Kenney said.  

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney, a Democrat, said the president is 'a fragile egomaniac obsessed with crowd size and afraid of the embarrassment of throwing a party to which no one wants to attend'

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney, a Democrat, said the president is ‘a fragile egomaniac obsessed with crowd size and afraid of the embarrassment of throwing a party to which no one wants to attend’

Trump similarly withdrew a White House invitation from the 2017 NBA Champion Golden State Warriors, after star Steph Curry publicly said he was not in favor of attending.

The issue became a flashpoint during the 2017 season after Trump suggested that players who kneel during the anthem should be fired. 

Last year, no Eagles players kneeled during the anthem before a regular season game, according to an analysis by SportsPundit.

However, Eagles cornerback Ron Brooks did kneel for the anthem in at least two preseason games. He was released in August before the regular season began.

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz, right, hands the Vincent Lombardi trophy to Nick Foles after winning Super Bowl LII

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz, right, hands the Vincent Lombardi trophy to Nick Foles after winning Super Bowl LII

Eagles Quarterback Nick Foles, left, and the team celebrate in the Super Bowl Victory Parade in February. The team will not be invited to the White House after fallout over the anthem

Eagles Quarterback Nick Foles, left, and the team celebrate in the Super Bowl Victory Parade in February. The team will not be invited to the White House after fallout over the anthem

Eagles players did make various standing protests during the anthem, including raised fists, in 73 instances last regular season, SportsPundit found. 

Trump has repeatedly stoked the issue, saying the NFL should fire any players who kneel during the anthem. During an interview after the new policy was announced, Trump praised the league for doing ‘the right thing.’

‘You have to stand proudly for the national anthem,’ Trump said. Or ‘you shouldn’t be playing, you shouldn’t be there. Maybe they shouldn’t be in the country.’

Several members of the Eagles have voiced staunch opposition to the NFL’s new anthem policy.

The Philadelphia Eagles championship team walks down the Art Museum Steps as hundreds of thousands filled the Parkway in Philadelphia in February to celebrate Super Bowl LII

The Philadelphia Eagles championship team walks down the Art Museum Steps as hundreds of thousands filled the Parkway in Philadelphia in February to celebrate Super Bowl LII

‘This is a fear of the diminished bottom line,’ defensive end Chris Long said last month after the NFL announced its new policy. 

‘It’s also fear of a president turning his base against a corporation. This is not patriotism. Don’t get it confused. These owners don’t love America more than the players demonstrating and taking real action to improve it.’

Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins is among the outspoken players have also vowed to carry on the cause.

‘I will not let it silence me or stop me from fighting,’ he said recently. ‘This has never been about taking a knee, raising a fist or anyone’s patriotism, but doing what we can to effect real change for real people.’

Philadelphia Eagles player protests during the national anthem in 2017

During the 2017 regular season, the Philadelphia Eagles were one of eight NFL teams that did not have sitting or kneeling protests during the national anthem, according to a SportsPundit analysis.

However, Eagles cornerback Ron Brooks did kneel for the anthem in at least two preseason games. He was released in August before the regular season began.

Eagles players did make various standing protests during the anthem, including raised fists, in 73 instances last regular season, SportsPundit found. 

When the Eagles faced the New England Patriots for Super Bowl LII at the end of the season, no player from either team kneeled during the anthem. 



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