Trump loves the spotlight that comes with sports. He especially loves when it’s on him
President Donald Trump has built most of his domestic travel around attending sporting events. Rather than rooting for any particular team, however, he seems more eager to soak up the spotlight and spectacle of the events — even if some in the crowd boo him.
Trump Embraces Sports Spotlight With Busy September Schedule in New York
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump couldn’t stand to cede the spotlight in 2020 as the Washington Nationals opened their pandemic-shortened season at home against the New York Yankees by having Dr. Anthony Fauci throw the first pitch. ″I think I’m doing that on Aug. 15 at Yankee Stadium,” the president said shortly before Fauci took the mound. He never made it to the Bronx that year, later saying he needed to stay at the White House to manage the pandemic. But eight months into his second term, Trump rarely shies away from ensuring he remains at the forefront of American sports and cultural life. He frequently turns to high-wattage athletic events to ensure his presence is felt far beyond the traditional realm of the presidency. In September alone, Trump has at least three New York-area sporting events on his calendar.
The U.S. tariffs that took effect Thursday morning were already well known, as well as lower than what Trump had initially threatened. Some countries are still trying to negotiate down the tax rates on their exports, and continued uncertainty seems to be the only certainty on Wall Street. All the while, the U.S. stock market faces criticism that it’s climbed too far, too fast since hitting a bottom in April, with prices looking too expensive.
Sports have long helped define who Trump is
Sports were central to Trump’s public persona decades before he entered politics. He once owned the USFL’s New Jersey Generals and bid unsuccessfully to buy the New York Mets. While he’s not expected to throw the first pitch on Thursday, he has done so previously, including at a 2000 game in Wrigley Field and six years later at Fenway Park. The Yankees game will be Trump’s eighth major sporting event in as many months since returning to the White House in January. He attended the Super Bowl in New Orleans, the Daytona 500, UFC fights in Miami and Newark, New Jersey, the NCAA wrestling championships in Philadelphia, the FIFA Club World Cup final in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and the U.S. Open men’s final.
