President Trump calls for Commanders to go back to old nickname, threatens to block D.C. stadium deal if they don't
Trump made multiple long posts on Truth Social on Sunday calling for the Washington Commanders to switch back to their old "Washington Redskins" team name. He even threatened to block the Commanders' impending move back to D.C. and their new stadium if they fail to do so.
Trump also called for MLB's Cleveland Guardians to go back to their former "Indians" nickname.
While not mentioning Trump by name, Guardians president Chris Antonetti made it clear the team isn't interested in going back Sunday.
'I understand there are very different perspectives on the decision we made a few years ago, but it's a decision we made and we've gotten the opportunity to build the brand as the Guardians over the last four years and we're excited about the future that's in front of us,' he said, via The Athletic.
The Commanders have not addressed Trump's post.
The Guardians officially changed their team name ahead of the 2022 season, shortly after they stopped using the 'Chief Wahoo' logo, which many saw as racist and offensive toward Native Americans.
The Commanders retired their old 'Redskins' nickname in 2020. They went by the Washington Football Team briefly before landing on the Commanders. Their old nickname, which had been in use since 1933, was widely seen as an offensive slur and drew plenty of criticism in its final years of use. 'For obvious reasons,' Commanders owner Josh Harris said in August, that can't return.
'I think [Commanders] is now embraced by our team, by our culture, by our coaching staff,' he said earlier this year, via ESPN. 'So we're going with that.'
Though it's unclear if the threat of blocking their stadium deal, real or not, will sway the Commanders, both Harris and Antonetti seem very content with their franchises' new names.
As for the validity of Trump's stadium threat, the Associated Press wrote:
The Commanders and the District of Columbia government announced a deal earlier this year to build a new home for the football team at the site the old RFK Stadium, the place the franchise called home for more than three decades.
Trump's ability to hold up the deal remains to be seen. President Joe Biden signed a bill in January that transferred the land from the federal government to the District of Columbia.
The provision was part of a short-term spending bill passed by Congress in December. While D.C. residents elect a mayor, a city council and commissioners to run day-to-day operations, Congress maintains control of the city's budget.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Jackson believes he can provide change for city as mayor
Aug. 1—[italics] Editor's note: Between now and the election, The Decatur Daily will profile each of the four Decatur mayoral candidates. [end italics] After almost three decades on the Decatur City Council, Billy Jackson is running for mayor of a city he believes desperately needs a change. Jackson is running against Kent Lawrence, Butch Matthews and Suzie Wiley. They all want to replace outgoing Mayor Tab Bowling, who chose not to seek a third term. The Municipal Election is Aug. 26. Jackson said he thinks the city "has been void of leadership and of transparency from the mayor's office for many years. If we are going to grow, and, if we are going to thrive as a community, you have to have those components in place." Jackson said he's the only candidate with the necessary experience and educational background to be mayor. While other candidates have business experience, he said running a city is different from running a business. Jackson said he's the only candidate "who can start the process from Day 1" and not have to figure out what a mayor does or what powers the position has. "I'm the only one who can start moving this process in a positive direction to make sure that we can address the issues that have been left unaddressed for years or need to be addressed for the future," Jackson said. Local attorney Carl Cole, a former mayoral candidate, said he is supporting Jackson. "Billy's got more institutional knowledge of City Hall and how things work than probably anybody up there," Cole said. In discussing the city's leadership and his role on the council, Jackson once told The Daily that he "refuses to go along just to get along." While he stands by those comments, he said that philosophy would change if elected mayor. "The mayor is the mayor for the entire city, and I have to serve as mayor for every citizen in the city if elected," Jackson said. He said people who have known him for years, and not just through newspaper stories, "know that I'm a person who's willing to work with everybody to make sure that we have a successful outcome. That would be my role as mayor." Jackson said his term as City Council president from 2004 to 2008 is an example of how he operates. He said he worked hard to make sure they were working as a team, and every council member was part of the process. If a council member was absent from a meeting, he said he would take notes of council meetings for the absent member. This would allow that member to make an informed decision on an issue, he said. "I worked hard to make sure that everyone was included," he said. "That's the role of the mayor. He has to be able to work with everybody and try and bring them together." Cole said Jackson was an effective council president. "Billy is not afraid to stand up to power for what he believes in," Cole said. "He's cool under pressure. He doesn't get rattled despite some of the things that are thrown at him. All of these things are indicative of someone with exceptional leadership skills." Cole said Jackson will vote against issues that he doesn't think are right for his district or city, but he always has a legitimate reason for that vote. "Billy has disagreed with me on policies before," Cole said. "But the thing about Billy is when he's on the opposite side, he's smart enough that you want to know the reason why." Jackson said the city has to get back to the basics. "We've got to make sure we've got a clean, safe environment," Jackson said. "We've got to take care of our roads and our city and find a way so that the city is appealing to not only future residents but to current residents." Jackson said there are things that he believes "could be addressed with proper leadership." He said the city hasn't adequately addressed its homeless situation, and it should start by partnering with local homeless agencies. "We can't just shun people who are in this situation," Jackson said. Jackson said the city needs a plan on dealing with mental health issues. The Police Department employs a full-time mental health liaison, but Jackson said she can't always be available. The city may need to hire a private company to provide the necessary coverage for mental health crises, he said. "We've got to have 24-hour coverage when it comes to dealing with our citizens who have mental health issues," he said. The city is approaching the two-year anniversary of the fatal shooting of Steve Perkins by a DPD officer on Sept. 29, 2023. Numerous protests over the city's handling of the incident have taken place. "My intent isn't necessarily just to get past what happened," Jackson said. "I want to understand how it happened and how to prevent this from ever happening again." He said it's important that Police, Decatur Fire & Rescue and the city's employees are adequately trained to identify and deal with situations like the Perkins and John Scott cases. Scott was arrested April 15 by DPD during an apparent mental health episode in which officers stunned him and struck him several times. At Morgan County Jail, Scott began showing medical distress and was taken to the Decatur Morgan Hospital. He was transferred to Huntsville Hospital, where he died a week later. "We've got to understand how to identify people who are in a crisis situation and know what to do when that situation occurs," Jackson said. The mayor is responsible for presenting the annual budget, with its $96.7 million general fund, to the City Council for approval. Jackson said they need to get away from the budget approach of recent years. He said the mayor now gives the proposed budget to council members for private reviews. The chief financial officer then summarizes it for the public "in an hour or less" at a work session, he said. Jackson said the mayor, council, CFO and department heads "should do line-by-line reviews" in a public meeting like they did early in his tenure on the council. A review like this takes 40 to 60 hours, he said. He said the lengthy review is important to help the council make good decisions. "They have to understand what the requests were that went into the budget, what was denied and why the department wanted to see that item," Jackson said. He said the city needs recreation centers in every district. He said it was a mistake to demolish T.C. Almon Recreation Center in 2023. He opposes the plan to demolish the Aquadome. He also pointed out District 5 doesn't have a rec center. "We've got to look at starting rec centers and programs in all of our communities, so that we are thriving and growing in those communities," Jackson said. — or 256-340-2432 Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
3 minutes ago
- Yahoo
New York Giants training camp: Position battle to watch on Day 8
Day 8 of the New York Giants' 2025 training camp is here already, and we've covered most of the positions for you thus far. One area we're concentrating on is the wide receiver depth behind Malk Nabers, Darius Slayton, and Wan'Dale Robinson. The Giants have 11 players attempting to fill perhaps four or five spots. There are free agent veterans (Lil'Jordan Humphery, Zach Pascal, Montrell Washington), returning players such as Jalin Hyatt, Ihmir Smith-Marsette, and Gunner Olszewski, and five undrafted rookie free agents: Beaux Collins, Da'Quan Felton, Dalen Cambre, Juice Wells Jr., and Jordan Bly. Hyatt has the inside track on the No. 4 spot behind the starters, but he's off to a slow start at camp. Leg ailments have limited him, and the notorious "forgotten" man in the Giants' offense is still as much of a mystery as ever. Hyatt will make the team, no doubt. He is a former third-round pick whom general manager Joe Schoen traded up to get. He's going to get the benefit of the doubt here. But he has to show some growth and improvement in order to stay long-term. Another player the Giants will likely keep is Collins. The Giants like his size (6-foot-3, 201 pounds), and he's shown a great deal of maturity for a rookie so far. He began his college career at Clemson before transferring to Notre Dame last year for his senior season. He went undrafted this spring, probably because of that disjointed college career. His numbers weren't eye-popping. He's making up for that now, however. BFW, of course, is Bryce Ford-Wheaton, the Giants' backup wide receiver who is one of their top special teamers. Ford-Wheaton tore his Achilles' tendon last week and is lost for the season. That leads us to the rest of the group. Special teams play will likely play a major role in who makes the 53-man roster and the practice squad, and who goes home. Smith-Marsette is the Giants' top returner. Olszewski is also an established returner and special-teams player. That narrows the field down greatly for the rest. Whoever gets those final two spots will have to earn it, and there's not much time or many available reps in which to do that. This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Giants training camp: Position battle to watch on Day 8
Yahoo
3 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Correction: Trump-Tariffs story
WASHINGTON (AP) — In a story published July 31, 2025, about tariffs, The Associated Press erroneously reported new tariffs were imposed on 68 countries and the European Union. The new tariffs were imposed on 66 countries, the European Union, Taiwan and the Falkland Islands. Josh Boak, The Associated Press Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
