Trump to go to Army-Navy football game for 2nd year in a row

WASHINGTON — For the 2d year in a row, PresidentDonald Trumpbooked the annual Military-Navy football game on his time desk.

Saturday’s game in Philadelphia is the 120th meeting between the two provider academies and holds a novel establish on the sports calendar.

The 2019 matchup in all likelihood will feature a few rain to boot to a heaping of tradition and salutes to provider. Trump, who moreover was once on the sport in 2016 as president-elect, is the 10th commander in chief to befriend the competition.

In 2016, Military snapped Navy’s 14-game successful streak and has now won three years in a row. Nonetheless the Midshipmen entered Saturday’s game as a essential favourite. At 9-2, they awful 23rd in the nation whereas Military’s Dusky Knights had a 5-7 file.

Traditionally, the president would no longer root for one academy over the more than a few and changes aspects at halftime, watching part of the sport with Military followers and the more than a few half with Navy supporters. Protection Secretary Mark Esper and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Workers, Gen. Mark Milley, had been moreover anticipated to befriend.

Trump has closely linked himself to the militia, promoting will increase in protection spending and in another country triumphs such because the October killing of Islamic Issue chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in Syria.

The game moreover comes amid a renewed push by the White Home to bring moments that depict Trump governing — similar to his talk over with to NATO in London final week and his successful lobbying for a original U.S.-Canada-Mexico swap deal — that it believes stands in stark distinction to the Democrats’ impeachment effort.

Within the arrival week, Trump is anticipated to alter into the third president impeached after the Home votes on payments of abuse of energy and obstruction of Congress.

Trump moreover has drawn the ire of many in the Pentagon. He has clashed with militia management on a preference of fronts, together with on pushes to withdraw some U.S. forces from the Middle East and the Korean Peninsula to boot to his at instances lackluster enhance for militia alliances similar to NATO. His first protection secretary, James Mattis, resigned final year over Trump’s decision to pull troops out from Syria.

Closing month, Navy Secretary Richard Spencer was once fired amid tensions between the Pentagon and the White Home after Trump intervened to reverse sentences towards three provider people accused of committing battle crimes.

Trump uncared for Pentagon leaders who had advised him the kind of transfer could well possibly fracture the integrity of the militia judicial diagram, the flexibility of militia commanders to be go correct snarl and self-discipline, and the boldness of U.S. allies and partners who host U.S. troops.

Amongst the more than a few presidents to befriend the Military-Navy game are Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Gerald Ford and John F. Kennedy.