Posted on 11/04/2015 2:06:05 PM PST by Wolfie
The Pentagon Paid Millions to Pro Sports Teams for Military Tributes
That time 80 members of the National Guard unfurled an American flag on the turf during an Atlanta Falcons football game? You paid for that. That on-field swearing-in ceremony for soldiers at a New York Mets game? You pairs for that, too.
That's because the Department of Defense paid at least $6.8 million in taxpayer money to professional sports teams for military tributes over the last few years, according to a new report by U.S. Senators John McCain (R) and Jeff Flake (R), both of Arizona.
The document shows that 72 of the 122 contracts between the Pentagon and pro sports teams issued since fiscal 2012 contained items dubbed "paid patriotism". These events included enlistment and re-enlistment ceremonies, as well as those emotionally-charged reunions in which a service member surprises his or her family on camera, drawing many tears in the arena.
Overall, the department spent $53 million on marketing and advertising contracts with sports teams since 2012, but that figure also included genuine outreach campaigns like stadium banners and enlistment tents.
Speaking at a Capitol Hill press conference on Wednesday, Flake said that people rightly assume that such events are paid for by the teams themselves, out of the goodness of their hearts. The incidents detailed in the new report "cheapens the whole lot".
(Excerpt) Read more at thefiscaltimes.com ...
next they will pay for a Muslim to eat his wife live on tv
The teams should be ashamed for taking their money.
The NFL should be inviting the military and paying for associated costs.
They won’t rest until government is insinuated into every aspect of American life.
These "professional-sports" (what an oxymoron) teams should swallow the cost of military tributes and be proud to do so.
Another reason why I despise “big” sports.
The government is giving my money by the billions to illegal aliens, abortionists, and sluggards - and I’m supposed to be outraged by this?
Of course it’s a great recruiting tool.
I remember as a little boy seeing nothing but car, beer and military recruitment commercials for NFL games.
Remember the Army’s old slogan “Be All You Can Be” over and over?
Although, I always enjoyed the Marines commercial about the making of a Sword, and it end up being a Marine standing at attention. Awesome!
So real shock. Liberals own most teams and run the leagues. Why would they NOT milk the military?
Keep watching your games folks. Democrats need your money to destroy you with.
They have about 448 days and 17 hours to do so.
It cheapens everybody involved - where is the shame?
Agreed. It probably got discontinued because Bammy got his thong in a wad.
They have no shame. Been extorting taxpayer money to build their stadiums for decades. No difference here.
They’d be ashamed if they didn’t. Taking money is what they do. They’re a business, you know.
Why? Why should they be providing free advertising?
Who cares? If it puts a smile on a soldiers face I say fine. Ping me when Flake gets upset about the hundreds of billions spent on illegals.
they pay others for entertainment why discriminate against the military
This is just wrong. The Pentagon shouldn’t need to be paying for this kind of promo... it should be VOLUNTEERED.
It’s capitalist I guess, but it is a very wry comment about where our patriotism has gone. If Fidel Castro ponied up enough smackeroos would they do a Cuba flag out there?
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