The war of words between President Donald Trump and the NFL has taken on an entirely new life, with Trump initially ripping NFL players and calling for them to be fired for kneeling during the national anthem. This was followed by protests from around the NFL on Sunday and Monday, which was followed by Trump firing off a bunch of critical tweets -- "Great anger"! -- on Tuesday morning.
With devastation from Hurricane Maria unfolding in Puerto Rico, it feels shortsighted to spend so much time focusing on a peaceful protest happening at the beginning of a football game. But Trump is apparently thrilled about the attention he is receiving, with CNN reporting that the president told people at a dinner on Monday night that his criticism of the NFL has "really caught on."
"It's really caught on. It's really caught on," Trump said, a person who attended the event told CNN. "I said what millions of Americans were thinking."
Another person in the room told CNN that "you could really tell [Trump] was satisfied" about the entire situation involving the NFL.
According to Josh Dawson of Politico, Trump likes the feud so much he wants to "keep it going."
Trump told conservatives at White House last night that his NFL feud was going well and he wants to keep it going, per people present.
— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) September 26, 2017
This makes some sense: Trump fired off a bunch of tweets on Tuesday morning related to the NFL. He pointed out that ratings for NFL games were way down.
Ratings for NFL football are way down except before game starts, when people tune in to see whether or not our country will be disrespected!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 26, 2017
According to the NFL and the actual numbers, this is not true. Trump was also excited about all of the booing, "great anger" and the "big progress" being made.
The booing at the NFL football game last night, when the entire Dallas team dropped to its knees, was loudest I have ever heard. Great anger
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 26, 2017
But while Dallas dropped to its knees as a team, they all stood up for our National Anthem. Big progress being made-we all love our country!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 26, 2017
Those things seem counterintuitive, but OK. And Trump believes the league should institute a rule that forces players to stand during the national anthem.
The NFL has all sorts of rules and regulations. The only way out for them is to set a rule that you can't kneel during our National Anthem!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 26, 2017
The NFL did not even begin requiring players to be on the field for the anthem until the 2009 season. It is unlikely a rule requiring players to stand will be instituted.
It also appears unlikely that the feud between Trump and the NFL will cease. It appears to be rallying a great number of people to his side and it absolutely infuriates those people on the other side of the aisle, with one congressman even calling for Trump's impeachment as a result of his NFL-related comments.
Additionally, the NFL and NFL players will not be backing down on this issue. There are players with the Carolina Panthers who are reportedly "frustrated" by the response from their owner in the matter, which could very well lead to another week of protests and demonstrations in Week 4. If that's the case, expect the president to continue tweeting away and commenting about the NFL.