Philadelphia’s mayor called President Trump a “fragile egomaniac,” and accused him of not being a “true patriot.” Mayor Jim Kenney released the following statement in response to Trump’s decision: The Eagles call the birthplace of our democracy home, so it’s no surprise that this team embodies everything that makes our country and our city great. Their athletic accomplishments on the field led to an historic victory this year. Fans all across the country rallied behind them because we like to root for the underdog and we feel joy when we see the underdogs finally win. I’m equally proud of the Eagles’ activism off the field. These are players who stand up for the causes they believe in and who contribute in meaningful ways to their community. They represent the diversity of our nation—a nation in which we are free to express our opinions. Disinviting them from the White House only proves that our President is not a true patriot, but a fragile egomaniac obsessed with crowd size and afraid of the embarrassment of throwing a party to which no one wants to attend. City Hall is always open for a celebration. While some have pointed out that no Eagles players actually knelt for the anthem this year, that fact obscures larger issues. According to NFL Network reporter Mike Garafolo, the Eagles were going to send a contingent of less than ten players to the White House: Details on why the Eagles made their decision to send a smaller contingent, leading to Trump pulling the plug on the visit. pic.twitter.com/k3Adv6LNZy — Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) June 4, 2018 The optics of Trump standing in front of the cameras with less than one-fifth of the Eagles roster, would have been unacceptable. Not to mention the 1,000 fans who were scheduled to attend the event. Had the Eagles group of less than ten shown actually shown up, fans would have outnumbered players better than 100:1. So, whether the Eagles knelt this year or not, they planned to take a symbolic knee on President Trump and the White House on Tuesday. Putting President Trump in an impossible position where he had to act. Trump did say however, that a celebration will still be held, even without the Super Bowl champs. According to Breitbart’s Michelle Moons, “Trump instead invited the fans to still come to the White House, but ‘to be part of a different type of ceremony—one that will honor our great country, pay tribute to the heroes who fight to protect it, and loudly and proudly play the National Anthem. '” “I will be there at 3:00 p.m. with the United States Marine Band and the United States Army Chorus to celebrate America,” Trump concluded. Follow Dylan Gwinn on Twitter @themightygwinn<doc-sep>Jim Kenny, the mayor of Philadelphia, criticised President Donald Trump Tuesday as a "scary guy" who had led the United States into "a bad time in our country." "Hopefully by the time he's gone, we can recover from this mess," Kenny told CNN's New Day. "But this is a bad time in our country." Kenny's remarks came after Trump disinvited the Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles from coming to the White House to be honored for their win. "The Philadelphia Eagles are unable to come to the White House with their full team to be celebrated tomorrow," a statement from the Office of the Press Secretary said. "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." Trump added to the remarks on Twitter Wednesday. "The Philadelphia Eagles Football team was invited to the White House," he wrote. "Unfortunately, only a small number of players decided to come, and we canceled the event. Staying in the Locker Room for the playing of our National Anthem is as disrespectful to our country as kneeling. Sorry!" The Philadelphia Eagles Football Team was invited to the White House. Unfortunately, only a small number of players decided to come, and we canceled the event. Staying in the Locker Room for the playing of our National Anthem is as disrespectful to our country as kneeling. Sorry! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 5, 2018 The Eagles released their own statement on Twitter but didn't address the president uninviting the team to the White House. "It has been incredibly thrilling to celebrate our first Super Bowl Championship. Watching the entire Eagles community come together has been an inspiration," the statement said in part. Kenny said in a statement Monday that Trump's decision to stop the Eagles White House celebration proved him to be a "fragile egomaniac." "Disinviting them from the White house only proves that our President is not a true patriot, but a fragile egomaniac obsessed with crowd size and afraid of the embarrassment of throwing a party to which no one wants to attend," he said. "I'm equally proud of the Eagles' activism off the field," he added. "These are players who stand up for the causes they believe in and who contribute in meaningful ways to their community. They represent the diversity of our nation—a nation in which we are free to express our opinions."<doc-sep>Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney was not happy with Donald Trump after the president disinvited the Eagles from the White House on Monday night. Trump’s cancellation was met with extreme reactions from people on both sides of the issue. What is normally simply a time of celebration and recognition of achievement has become an extremely divisive political issue. Some are praising Trump for standing up to the NFL players who protested during the national anthem, despite the fact that no one on the Eagles kneeled during the 2017 season. Many are upset with Trump for breaking a decades-long tradition for Super Bowl champions over what they believe are petty reasons. One of the more scathing reactions came from Kenney. In an official statement, Kenney responded to Trump by questioning the president’s patriotism, going so far as to call him a “fragile egomaniac.” He said, “Disinviting them from the White House only proves that our President is not a true patriot, but a fragile egomaniac obsessed with crowd size and afraid of the embarrassment of throwing a party to which no one wants to attend” Kenney is referencing the fact that Trump decided to cancel the scheduled visit after learning that only a small group from the Eagles was planning to come. Rather than welcoming the smaller contingent, Trump canceled the visit altogether, saying the fans “deserve better.” Kenney concluded his statement by inviting the team to celebrate at City Hall rather than the White House. I’m proud of the Eagles on & off the field. Our players represent the diversity of our nation—a nation where we're free to express our opinions. Disinviting them only proves the President is not a true patriot. City Hall is always open for a celebration. https://t.co/kU7LZkBNin — Jim Kenney (@PhillyMayor) June 5, 2018 Jane Slusser, Kenney’s chief of staff, also weighed in on the issue, posting a picture of Trump’s inauguration crowd next to a picture of the parade after Philly won the Super Bowl saying “Our party was bigger than yours.” Our party was bigger than yours #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/HIZk8xnJF1 — Jane Slusser (@janeslusser) June 5, 2018 A surreal story continues to develop as the president continues his vendetta against the NFL.<doc-sep>
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney released a statement defending the Eagles in light of Donald Trump rescinding the Super Bowl champions’ invitation to the White House on Monday evening. It’s safe to say Kenney did not mince words. “The Eagles call the birthplace of our democracy home, so it’s no surprise that this team embodies everything that makes our country and our city great. Their athletic accomplishments on the field led to an historic victory this year. Fans all across the country rallied behind them because we like to root for the underdog and we feel joy when we see the underdogs finally win. I’m equally proud of the Eagles’ activism off the field. These are players who stand up for the causes they believe in and who contribute in meaningful ways to their community. They represent the diversity of our nation—a nation in which we are free to express our opinions. “Disinviting them from the White House only proves that our President is not a true patriot, but a fragile egomaniac obsessed with crowd size and afraid of the embarrassment of throwing a party to which no one wants to attend. “City Hall is always open for a celebration.” Kenney wasn’t the only politician to come to the Eagles’ defense. Senator Bob Casey invited the team to the United States Capitol Building. I’m proud of what the @Eagles accomplished this year. I’m skipping this political stunt at the White House and just invited the Eagles to Congress. @Eagles How about a tour of the Capitol? https://t.co/niWR7zkSYx — Senator Bob Casey (@SenBobCasey) June 4, 2018 Pennsylvania governor Tom Wolf also stood up for the Eagles. Statement from @GovernorTomWolf spokesman: “Pa. is proud of our Super Bowl champions and their contributions to our commonwealth on and off the field. No amount of political silliness in Washington will damper our enthusiasm or take away the victory for the Eagles or their fans.” — Aaron Kasinitz (@AaronKazreports) June 5, 2018 Trump’s original statement said the Eagles were uninvited to the White House because they “disagree with the President because he insists that they proudly stand for the National Anthem.” Yet, no member of the Eagles’ Super Bowl roster did not stand for anthem in 2017.