U.S. President Donald Trump threatened the ownership of Washington’s NFL club on Sunday, saying that the team must “immediately” drop Commanders and change the team’s name back to Redskins or suffer delays in their plans to construct a new stadium in D.C.
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He also asked the Cleveland Guardians’ owners to reinstate the team’s more than century-old name, the Indians, in the same Truth Social post, claiming to have heard “a big clamoring” for both name changes.
After deciding to drop titles and logos that were harmful to Native Americans, both clubs have been using their present names since their respective 2022 seasons. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, redskin in particular is “an insulting and contemptuous term for an American Indian.”
“Now, things are different.”
Trump initially stated on Sunday morning that the “great Indian people, in massive numbers, want this to happen,” so the “Washington ‘Whatever’s'” and Cleveland should move quickly to restore their previous identity.
“They are slowly losing their prestige and tradition. Compared to three or four years ago, the times have changed. He wrote, “Owners, get it done! We are a country of passion and common sense.”
Trump misidentified Cleveland as having one of the six original baseball clubs in the article. Cleveland did have a team in the early years of the National League, but that was after the original eight-team circuit began in 1902, before the MLB was established 1876
Cleveland was known as the Lakeshores when they first joined the American League in 1900. In 1902, they changed their name to the Naps in honor of player-manager Napoleon “Nap” Lajoie. Charles Somers, the club’s owner, invited local sports writers to help him rename the team after he left in 1914, and they decided on Indians.
Trump reflects, council discusses
Trump then said that he may get involved in the current process for the club to obtain a new stadium at the location of RFK Stadium, which was its previous home for more than three decades, after his initial idea had “totally blown up, but only in a very positive way.”
“I might impose a condition on them that I won’t negotiate a deal for them to construct a stadium in Washington unless they return to the original name, the Washington Redskins, and drop the absurd nickname, Washington Commanders,” he wrote.
“The Deal would be more exciting for everyone, and the Team would be much more valuable.”
CNN reports that Trump also suggested changing the name in an interview with reporters earlier this month, stating that it doesn’t have the “same ring” to him.
The extent of Trump’s administrative authority over “the deal” is not immediately apparent.
The District of Columbia received the disputed site from the National Park Service through the
Two weeks prior to Trump’s inauguration, former President Joe Biden signed the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act into law after it was enacted in December.
It permits D.C. to redevelop the site for a stadium and a variety of other uses, like as housing, public buildings, and green space. D.C. is governed by a mayor and council, but Congress controls its finances.
According to the Associated Press, the team and D.C. reached an agreement in late April to construct a new stadium as part of a US$4 billion project that will be primarily funded by the team ($2.7 billion), with the district contributing at least $1.1 billion by 2032.
When asked about the project during a media availability last week, Mayor Muriel Bowser responded, “The council has the final say over whether to approve the agreement.”
The Commanders are becoming uneasy. The council must take action; that is what must occur.
Next week marks the start of the redevelopment plan’s public witness hearings.
The game’s name
Trump concluded his follow-up article by urging Cleveland to revert to its previous name, arguing that doing so would benefit former Ohio state senator Matt Dolan’s federal political career. Dolan was the man Trump accused of owning the Guardians.
Dolan, a Republican who does not support Trump and has made two unsuccessful attempts to win the U.S. Senate, is a member of the Dolan family, the team’s main owner, but he hasn’t been actively involved in day-to-day operations since he entered state politics in 2016.
Politically active Matt Dolan has lost three consecutive elections as a result of that absurd name change. Trump wrote, “What he doesn’t realize is that he might actually win an election if he changed the name back to the Cleveland Indians.”
“Indians are receiving really unjust treatment. MIGA stands for “Make Indians Great Again.”
Before a Sunday afternoon game, Chris Antonetti, president of baseball operations for the Guardians, stated that the team had no intention of changing the name again.
“We acknowledge that opinions on the choice we made a few years ago vary, but it’s clear that we made it. Over the past four years, we’ve had the chance to establish a reputation as the Guardians, and we’re looking forward to what lies ahead,” he stated, according to AP.
Josh Harris, the owner of Commanders, made a similar statement in February when questioned about going back, according to the Washington Post.
“Our team, our culture, and our coaching staff are now embracing it,” Harris stated.
That’s what we’re going with. The name Commanders now has a meaning in this building.
For comment, National Post has reached out to the Guardians, Bowser’s office, and the Commanders.
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