Free Republic

President Donald Trump said Friday he expects to welcome the hometown Washington Capitals hockey team to the White House for winning the Stanley Cup. But he adds: "If they don't want to be here, I don't want them." Trump congratulated the Capitals on his Twitter feed after the team won the NHL title with a 4-3 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final. He singled out series MVP Alex Ovechkin as "a true Superstar" and said the city is "popping" after the Capitals won the team's first Stanley Cup championship. The president spoke...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump held out an olive branch in his feud with National Football League players on Friday, asking them for recommendations as he considers pardoning several thousand people who may have been unfairly treated by the criminal justice system. But civil rights activists were skeptical of Trump’s gesture, given his repeated use of a controversy around the national anthem at NFL games to stoke the country’s culture wars, and his fraught relationship with the African-American community. Trump has been highly critical of NFL players who have protested the fatal police shootings of unarmed black men...

President Trump said Friday that he is considering a posthumous pardon to boxing legend Muhammad Ali, who was convicted of dodging conscription during the Vietnam War. “I am thinking about Muhammad Ali,” Trump told reporters at the White House shortly before departing to the Group of Seven nations summit in Quebec City. Ali – who died in 2016 — refused to fight in the war when the government tried to conscript him in 1967, citing his religious beliefs and opposition to the US involvement in the conflict. He was stripped of his heavyweight title and charged with draft evasion. A...

If former basketball star and de facto diplomat Dennis Rodman travels to Singapore next week for a summit between North Korea and the United States, a cryptocurrency company that lets you buy marijuana may be footing the bill. Rodman's agent confirmed his interest in the Singapore trip to the Washington Post, saying he would provide "moral support" to President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un. The former Chicago Bulls player's past trips to North Korea have been paid for by the cryptocurrency company. During his 2017 trip, Rodman was photographed wearing a PotCoin T-shirt and baseball cap, sending the cryptocurrency...

NEW YORK - After the president uninvited the Super Bowl-winning Philadelphia Eagles to the White House, former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick is trying to force President Donald Trump to talk — with a subpoena. Kaepernick is accusing the president and Vice President Mike Pence of colluding with the league to keep him from getting a job, according to Yahoo Sports. The 30-year-old last suited up in the NFL in 2016. At the beginning of that season, he kicked off the on-field protests against systemic racism that involve players kneeling during the national anthem before games. Before the next season, he...

On this episode, we discuss three remarkable yet mostly forgotten stories of bravery last occurred in the 1970s and 80s in Soviet Armenia—and a twist that connects them.

Dennis Rodman, the NBA Hall of Famer and noted friend of Kim Jong Un, could reportedly be visiting Singapore when President Trump is scheduled to meet with the North Korean leader on June 12. Rodman will arrive in Singapore a day before the planned summit and could play a role in the negotiations, according to The New York Post. There has been no indication that Rodman would be involved in the summit, but a representative for Rodman, Darren Prince, told the news outlet that the trip to Singapore has not been confirmed, but that Rodman would be willing to go...

Over the past couple of days the subject of athlete activism, always present to some degree in American sports, but recently revived by Colin Kaepernick and a few other football players in the form of silent protests during the National Anthem, exploded into a headline dominating news story. Lighting the fuse: President Trump directly inserting himself into the controversy. He did so during a speech on Friday night and during a series of tweets Saturday and continuing into this morning in which he urged NFL owners to “fire” or suspend players who do not stand for the national anthem. He...

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The FAI gets a lot of slack – and maybe rightly so – but they deserve a lot of credit for making a statement in their latest move. On Friday, the Irish soccer's governing body announced that the Republic of Ireland players will wear jerseys sporting the LGBT rainbow flag when they face the United States at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday night. The numbers on the back of each Ireland player's top will feature rainbow colours as opposed to the traditional white. The FAI posted an image on Twitter showing the number 4 jersey of John O'Shea, Ireland's defensive...

Defending champions Netherlands headline the second night of action, as Michael van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld begin their assault for a record-equalling fourth World Cup of Darts title. The Dutch darting giants kick off their campaign against the Gibraltar pairing of Dyson Parody and debutant Justin Broton - who will be hoping to secure just their country's second World Cup of Darts win. However, with the Netherlands failing to qualify for this year's football World Cup, world No 1 Van Gerwen is determined to give the Dutch fans something to cheer this summer.

President Donald Trump wants to reverse a trend of fewer children participating in sports and make youth sports more accessible to economically disadvantaged students. The White House is promoting the goals of the President's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition on Wednesday and will hold a field day with the president on the South Lawn. Trump is expected to join athletes at stations that will include flag football, baseball, volleyball, golf, soccer and track and field. Trump issued an executive order in February refocusing the council on youth sports as opposed to President Barack Obama's emphasis on fitness and healthy...

I remember when taking a knee in football was one of the most satisfying things in this life. It used to mean one of two things: a well-deserved respite from the grueling grind of sweltering practices during the hot and humid late summer weather of the pre-season or the final magnificent moments before a looming victory in America’s most popular sport. … No, this isn’t really about “free speech.” If a group of NFL players used the field to protest against same-sex “marriage,” abortion, or some other wicked perversion held dear by the left, I’m almost certain that many of...

... We might suggest American (and Canadian, for that matter) professional sports leagues can it with national anthems before every last game or race but save it for games played on significant national holidays. Would it be terribly un-American if "The Star Spangled Banner" was saved for opening baseball games played on Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labour Day, to name the three major such holidays occurring during baseball season? Before football, basketball, and hockey games played on Veteran's Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Presidents' Day? Before NASCAR races run on most of those holidays? (For that matter, would Canada consider...

Anthem protests are going to continue in 2018 despite this new policy-- The key reason is that liberal media organizations and social justice groups will continue to encourage and support players who participate NFL OWNERS FINALLY LISTEN TO THE FANS Jeff Crouere image By Jeff Crouere —— Bio and Archives May 26, 2018 Comments | Print This | Subscribe | Email Us After a year of intense controversy concerning player protests during the National Anthem, the NFL finally decided to act. At the spring NFL owners meeting this week, a decision was made to require players to “stand and show...

For audiences in the US, Fox Sports will be your broadcaster. New York (ET): 2.45 p.m. Chicago (CT): 1.45 p.m. Denver (MT): 12.45 p.m. Las Vegas (PT): 11.45 a.m. Los Angeles (PT): 11.45 a.m. Honolulu (HAST): 8.45 a.m.

NEW YORK — Civil rights activists protested outside NFL headquarters Friday, calling on team owners to overturn their new national anthem policy and urging a boycott of the league and its sponsors. About 50 people gathered at the midtown Manhattan office building for a rally organized by National Action Network, a civil rights nonprofit. Kirsten John Foy, the group's northeast regional director, was the first of 10 speakers who took turns during the 40-minute demonstration to criticize NFL team owners and President Donald Trump. "Our demand is that the NFL reverse that immoral and unconstitutional decision," Foy said....

IKEA Singapore announced a recall on Thursday (May 24) for its SLADDA bicycle due to fall risks caused by its drive belt. "The drive belt can suddenly snap, which in turn can lead to falls," IKEA said.

In these days of just about anything bearing Native American imagery getting trashed in the name of cultural sensitivity — particularly team and school mascots — one Colorado high school and one tribe are showing America how real learning and communication comes to life. Strasburg High School has always been “Home of the Indians,” but instead of banning the name and the logos that mark hallways and uniforms, students at the school decided to reach out to the region’s Northern Arapaho Tribe, KCNC-TV reported. A collaboration is born The students worked with the tribe to make subtle changes to the...

While China’s City Bowl league has already begun its 2018 regular season, teams from the American Football League of China, AFLC, are still in the midst of their preseasons, and will not begin regular season play until August at the earliest. The league held its annual spring meetings in March, and quite a few new teams attended the meeting and were accepted as members for the league’s sixth season of play. Here is a quick rundown of the AFLC’s newest teams.