SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA—Filipinos will get a closer look at American President Donald Trump early this month.
For his longest overseas journey to date, POTUS (Secret Service codename for President of the United States) embarks on a 12-day trip on Nov. 3 to 14 to Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines.
The Asian swing seeks to build a united front in the region to thwart North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missiles buildup.
Trump’s visit and embrace of President Duterte despite the latter’s deadly campaign against drug suspects will sit well with Malacañang, but not with opposition and human rights groups.
Meanwhile, Filipinos averse to politics but keen on sports would rather focus on POTUS and his rant against the world’s most powerful sports groups—the National Football League and the National Basketball Association.
Trump picked a fight with the NFL, calling any football player kneeling not standing during the pregame playing of the national anthem “a son of a bitch who should be run out of the league.”
He later tweeted that there will be “tremendous backlash against the NFL and its players for “disrespect of our country.”
Most NFL players are black and Trump’s outburst appealed to his conservative base, mainly rural white voters overlooked by pollsters but largely contributed to his stunning election victory.
Since day one at the White House, Trump has rained epithets on his critics via Twitter.
The tempest over the NFL’s adherence to first amendment rights was started by a former San Francisco 49ers quarterback.
Colin Kaepernick knelt in silent protest last year during the playing of the national anthem to draw attention to racial injustice and police brutality against blacks.
Responding to Trump’s tirade, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and team owners, including some who contributed to Trump’s campaign backed their players.
In defiance, NFL teams playing last Sunday were solidly united—kneeling, linking arms and holing up in the locker room during the anthem.
The president’s broadside against footballers drew the ire of popular NBA players, notably Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors and LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Both superstars with countless international followers Filipinos included, scored the president for his lack of tolerance and disturbing views on race.
Curry said he will not go to the White House for the traditional NBA champions’ visit in February, prompting Trump to seem to disinvite the entire Warriors team.
The Warriors said later in a statement that they would instead use a visit to Washington to stress “issues of diversity and inclusiveness.”
“Curry already said he ain’t going! So therefore ain’t no invite,” James wrote in a tweet directed at Trump. “Going to the White House was a great honor until you showed up.”
As events of last week bared, Trump, should have had a career as a boxer—a brawler in the mold of Roberto Duran and a loudmouth in the image of Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Instead, he is POTUS, a careless slugger who happens to be the leader of the free world.