Trump Threatens NFL Tax Breaks In Early-Morning Tweetstorm

President Donald Trump talks to media as he walks across the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, Sept. 29, 2017, to Marine One for the short trip to Andrews Air Force Base en route to Bedminster, N.J.. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
FILE - In this Sept. 29, 2017 file photo, President Donald Trump talks to media as he walks across the South Lawn of the White House in Washington. Trump is lashing out at the mayor of Puerto Rico's capital city in a... FILE - In this Sept. 29, 2017 file photo, President Donald Trump talks to media as he walks across the South Lawn of the White House in Washington. Trump is lashing out at the mayor of Puerto Rico's capital city in a war of words over recovery efforts after Hurricane Maria smashed into the U.S. territory. Trump is out with a series of tweets criticizing San Juan Carmen Yulin Cruz for criticizing the Trump administration's hurricane response. The mayor has accused his administration of "killing us with the inefficiency." (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Up early Tuesday morning, President Donald Trump fired off several tweets referring to his ongoing feud with NFL players protesting during the national anthem.

Trump escalated his tiff with the football league by suggesting the government nix the NFL’s tax breaks.

The NFL gave up its tax exempt status in 2015, leaving it unclear which tax breaks Trump would be looking to eliminate. The league does see tax breaks when building stadiums, but those are granted by local governments, not the federal government.

Trump also went after Jemele Hill, the ESPN anchor recently suspended from the network for tweets about the owner of the Dallas Cowboys.

Monday night, Trump defended Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who said recently that he would not allow any player who kneels during the national anthem to play.

Trump’s renewed interest in the NFL and players’ protests came after Vice President Mike Pence walked out on a football game over the weekend when players kneeled for the national anthem.

Latest Livewire

Notable Replies

  1. Well, why is the NFL getting massive tax breaks?

  2. Why is the NFL getting massive tax breaks

    It´s a little disconcerting to wake up and find myself agreeing, in part, with Donald Trump.

  3. As I understand it, the players do not have a constitutional right to protest on the filed. The Constitution stipulates that the government shall make no laws abridging freedom of speech. Non-government employers can impose rules that the government cannot. I do not believe that NFL owners should interfere with freedom of expression, but I do not see this as a constitutional issue. That said, if the government punishes an individual or corporation (corporations are individuals, too, according to the Republicans) for not sufficiently worshiping the flag, that would be a constitutional issue.

  4. Donald Trump VS _______________
    Another day another battle
    The distractor in Chief
    Meanwhile back at the Mueller investigation

  5. I would call the bluff. Teams cannot afford to bench 1/2 roster for games. What if entire roster took knee? Forfeit game?

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

207 more replies

Participants

Avatar for ajm Avatar for austin_dave Avatar for srfromgr Avatar for butlerknights Avatar for mondfledermaus Avatar for ncsteve Avatar for jep07 Avatar for steviedee111 Avatar for jimtoday Avatar for carlosfiance Avatar for inversion Avatar for yskov Avatar for 26degreesrising Avatar for rb639 Avatar for captaincommonsense Avatar for fiftygigs Avatar for tena Avatar for georgeh Avatar for origamitrain Avatar for greysea Avatar for ncgirl741 Avatar for centralasiaexpat Avatar for thinski Avatar for the_loan_arranger

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: