Trump Withdraws NBA White House Invitation After Stephen Curry Said He Would Skip

Ezra Shaw / Getty Images

A day after Stephen Curry said he was opposed to the Golden State Warriors visiting the White House — a traditional trip made by championship teams in major league sports — President Donald Trump announced via Twitter early Saturday that he was withdrawing the invitation.

Curry told reporters Friday that he was not in favor of visiting the White House, even though, according to Bleacher Report, the team had yet to receive a formal invitation.

"I don't want to go," said Curry.

"By acting and not going, hopefully that will inspire some change when it comes to what we tolerate in this country and what is accepted and what we turn a blind eye to," he said.

Curry cautioned, however, he was not speaking for the entire team. Warriors Coach Steve Kerr had said the team would discuss the trip together and take a vote.

Marvin Gentry / Reuters

But on Saturday morning, the president himself tweeted he was withdrawing the invitation.

"Going to the White House is considered a great honor for a championship team. Stephen Curry is hesitating, therefore invitation is withdrawn!"

It was not clear whether Trump was withdrawing the invitation to the entire Golden State Warriors or just Curry. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trump's tweet came the morning after he used a rambling address at an Alabama rally to attack NFL players who protest during the national anthem, calling them "sons of bitches."

“Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners,” said the president, “when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, ‘Get that son of a bitch off the field right now, out. He’s fired. He’s fired!’"

This is not the first time Trump has acted preemptively in the face of protest or criticism.

In February, he opted to skip the traditional presidential appearance at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner amid a frosty relationship with the media.

Last month, he and First Lady Melania Trump announced they would not participate in this year's Kennedy Center Honors activities, after two honorees said they would boycott any White House events in protest against Trump.

from BuzzFeed - USNews http://ift.tt/2xqb281