PRESIDENT Donald Trump has praised Jalen Hurts as a “terrific guy and player” despite the Philadelphia Eagles’ star quarterback skipping the White House ceremony due to scheduling conflicts.
Hurts’ absence comes after he refused to confirm his attendance when asked by a Time Magazine reporter at Thursday evening’s Time 100 Gala in New York City.
When asked if he would visit the White House on Monday, Hurts stood silently and refused to give a clear answer, saying, “Ummm.”
The Super Bowl-winning Eagles’ were showered with praise by Trump as he congratulated them on accomplishing “football immortality” with their victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in February.
“We’re thrilled to welcome everyone to the White House – special place – and to celebrate Super Bowl 59 champions the Philadelphia Eagles,” Trump said.
“The Eagles have turned out to be an incredible team and incredible group with a fantastic coach and coaches.
“Two years ago the Eagles came incredibly close to football immortality and Super Bowl 57, you remember that game.
“But after a hard fought game you suffered a heartbreaking loss to the Kansas City Chiefs by just three points, it looked like you had the game.”
Trump continued, “This past year, the Eagles were determined to get it back and get it back they did.”
Despite Hurts missing from the South Lawn during the ceremony, Trump acknowledged the quarterback’s stellar season.
“He had a great season and a great game, finished with 32 touchdowns on the year. Turning one stellar performance after the other,” Trump said of Hurts.
“He’s a terrific guy and a terrific player.”
Trump was gifted with a signed Eagles helmet and a jersey with his name engraved in the back with the number 47 embedded.
Hurts’ absence was reported by NBC News hours before the event was scheduled to begin.
SAQUON FLIES ON AIR FORCE ONE
Meanwhile, the Eagles’ star running back Saquon Barkley hung out with Trump on Sunday, a day before the team’s White House visit.
Barkley and Trump were pictured disembarking Marine One on Trump’s golf course in Bedminster, New Jersey.
The pair then flew back to Washington DC on board Air Force One.
Barkley clapped back at the online backlash he received following his outing with the president.
“Lol some people are really upset cause I played golf and flew to the White House with the PRESIDENT,” Barkley wrote on X on Monday.
“Maybe I just respect the office, not a hard concept to understand.
“Just golfed with Obama not too long ago… and look forward to finishing my round with Trump!
“Now ya get out my mentions with all this politics and have [an] amazing day.”
During Monday’s ceremony, Trump praised Barkley as a “handsome guy.”
“The season started off slow, but you soon caught fire with your great coach inspiring you and you got the ball to your superstar running back, who I met yesterday,” Trump said.
Timeline of Donald Trump’s beef with the Philadelphia Eagles
The clash between the Eagles and the president has been simmering for years and has turned into a grudge match
2016:
Donald Trump was annoyed about the protests that had begun in 2016, when San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began silently kneeling on the sidelines during the anthem to raise awareness around racism and, specifically, the killing of black men by police.
The irate president suggested NFL owners fire “son of a b***h” players who “disrespect” the flag by kneeling.
It set off a fierce national debate over the rights of the football players to protest at games.
2017:
Donald Trump blasted the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick for kneeling during the national anthem in protest of police brutality toward black Americans.
However, none of the Eagles had taken a knee during the anthem in 2017.
2018:
The Eagles beat the New England Patriots 41-33 in the first Super Bowl title for Philadelphia.
The Eagles were then – as is customary – invited to a White House event to honor the team’s success.
But many players signalled they would boycott the prestigious event.
This was attributed to the president’s demands that players stand during the national anthem at games.
Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins planned to skip the ceremony “to avoid being used as any kind of pawn.”
He claimed in a statement in 2018 that the White House had made a “decision to lie, and paint the picture that these players are anti-America, anti-flag and anti-military.”
The White House accused Eagles team members of pulling a “political stunt.”
A raging Trump uninvited the team.
The White House instead hosted what he dubbed a brief “patriotic celebration” featuring a military band and chorus delivering the Star-Spangled Banner and God Bless America.
Trump slammed them in a statement, saying, “They disagree with their president because he insists that they proudly stand for the national anthem, hand on heart, in honor of the great men and women of our military and the people of our country.”
But, being publicly snubbed and mocked riled some players, who then complained Trump was unfairly painting them as anti-American.
2025:
The Philadelphia Eagles triumphed over the Kansas City Chiefs in New Orleans on January 9, beating them 40-22.
A member of the Eagles ownership group told The U.S. Sun, “If we win the Super Bowl, we wouldn’t go to the White House.”
Trump reportedly left the game early at halftime as the Chiefs were down 24-0.
Despite doubts that Trump would invite the team to the White House after the controversy in 2018, Karoline Leavitt announced in March that Trump had extended an invitation for the team to come visit after their win.
A spokesperson for the team said the champions accepted the invitation “enthusiastically.”
“And I want to tell you he is a handsome guy, but I wouldn’t want to tackle him.
“Saquon Barkley, where is Saquon. He’s great, I got to know him a little bit and I offered him a ride on Air Force One.
“And he loved it, we loved being together, he’s a great young guy and an incredible football player.”
Last month, an Eagles spokesperson confirmed the team “enthusiastically” accepted Trump’s invitation.
Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie insisted every player would choose whether they’d attend or not.
Speculation grew earlier this year over whether or not Trump would invite the Eagles to the White House at all after his dispute with the team during his first term.
The Eagles didn’t visit the White House during Trump’s first term in office after they won the Super Bowl in 2018.
Trump canceled the event after it was revealed that only a handful of players agreed to attend.
Hurts was not a part of the team at the time.
However, the beef appeared to be squashed in February when Trump confirmed he planned to celebrate with the champions in Washington DC.
Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/14123427/jalen-hurts-snubs-trump-white-house-philadelphia-eagles/