With the controversy over President Trump’s on-the-cheap fast food feast for the victorious Clemson Tigers football players briefly crowding the government shutdown, the border wall, and the latest revelations in the Mueller investigation out of the news cycle, a lot of people were obviously insulted on behalf of the players whom they thought deserved to be treated with as much dignity during a White House visit as any prior group of winning athletes.
The Trump administration used the excuse of the government shutdown as the reason for why no White House kitchen staff was available to make a proper meal for the visiting players, forcing Trump to pay for the reception out of his own pocket, but his parsimonious purchase of burgers, chicken nuggets, and fries from major fast food chains —rather than ordering takeout from a catering firm or proper restaurant — displayed a contempt for the college student-athletes and a miserly approach to forking over his own cash that did sit well with Michael Strahan, the former NY Giants defensive end who is now a co-host on ABC’s Good Morning America.
Strahan decided to outclass and outspend the president with a generous on-air invitation to the team to attend a sumptuous feast of lobster and caviar at GMA’s Times Square studios, a feast that he vowed to pay for personally, describing it as the proper meal that they deserve.
ATTENTION @ClemsonFB: @michaelstrahan has a very important announcement for you! Should we expect to see you in Times Square for lobster AND caviar soon?#QTNA #GMADay https://t.co/W1vUNMab63 pic.twitter.com/fwPlNxERyb
— Good Morning America (@GMA) January 15, 2019
It’s no surprise that as a former athlete Strahan would be offended by Trump’s disdainful treatment of the unpaid college football champions, but lobster and caviar are far beyond the level of what even a White House inhabited by a normal president would likely offer.
Strahan’s generosity paints Trump’s penurious buffet offering with all of the scorn it deserves, even if there are so many more important issues to focus on at the moment.
At least the Clemson players will finally get a free meal that matches the excellence of their achievement, a level of excellence that Trump failed to properly recognize and one that he consistently fails to achieve in his own performance.
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