PITTSBURGH – Inside Acrisure Stadium, home of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz took the stage Tuesday and received a hug from Will Allen, one of the team’s former quarterbacks. Fans held signs with “coach” written on the back. Four days later, not far from Steelers training camp in Latrobe, Pa., Allen’s former teammate, former Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, mocked him on stage at a rally for former President Donald Trump, calling him “not a true football coach”. he did it. “Delete. “He’ll never be able to protect me,” Brown added. As Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris enter the fourth quarter of their presidential campaign, a split screen between Allen and Brown in western Pennsylvania highlighted one of the most notable games between the two combined campaigns. Their effort to draft a former player for their beloved Steelers. . Track and promote your area.
The suggestions helped to reinforce the key themes that the campaign wanted to project. The proposal was developed as part of an effort for Harris, who has the support of several former Steelers, including several members of the famed “Steel Curtain” defensive team used for four Super Bowl championships in the 1970s. To attract men and to to reinforce the party’s football message, he fielded Waltz, a former high school football coach, as his presidential candidate this cycle. For Trump, the endorsements of Steelers renegades like Brown and Le’Veon Bell, two other former members of the franchise, are further evidence that the former president’s standing among black people and celebrities has improved. Speak openly. Both campaigns also hope to capitalize on their association with Western Pennsylvania’s strongest brand.
“The Steelers are essentially the cultural identity of the entire region,” said state Rep. Nick Pisciottano, a Democrat from Allegheny County. “This has a lot to do with the character of the people who live in or come from Western Pennsylvania.”The political battle with the Steelers intensified on Sunday when Trump attended the team’s game against the New York Jets. That’s why the Democratic National Committee has installed billboards in stadiums touting Trump’s economic achievements in the state. Meanwhile, Harris released a list of endorsements from former Steelers, including “Medium” defensive linemen Joe Greene, Jerome Bettis and the family of late quarterback Franco Harris. Former cornerbacks Mel Blount and Allen also voiced their support for Harris.
Trump was joined on stage in Latrobe by Brown and Bell, as well as former wide receiver Mike Wallace. These are all players who will be remembered by the younger generation of fans. Jack Lambert, a Hall of Fame linebacker for the 1970s team, also endorsed Trump for months on social media. The messages from Steelers fans on both sides couldn’t be more different. In his meeting with Walz, Allen mocked Project 2025, a conservative policy plan that many former Trump administration officials have contributed to but which the former president has rejected, and Trump’s plan to “cut taxes on all your friends.” .”They take care of our workers, our elderly, our children,” Allen said of Harris and Walz. “They fight for all of us will move our country forward.”
In Latrobe, Brown called Walz “Tampon Tim” and Bell called him “Trump or Trump?” wearing a shirt with the phrase”I know the media is going to call me crazy,” said Brown, who promoted a cryptocurrency called “MAGA Memecoin.” “It’s ridiculous that Trump and I are talking here. But I want to make this clear. We are not like that. That’s right.”Brown has a legal background and in recent years has built an online persona around his “CTESPN” brand. Brown’s erratic behavior suggests he suffers from a degenerative brain disease called chronic traumatic encephalopathy. It occurs after repeated concussions or brain trauma, but cannot be diagnosed until death.
Earlier this month, Brown met with Trump colleague J.D. Sen. Vance (R-Ohio) spoke directly to Donald Trump Jr. for Brown told the Daily Mail on Sunday that he would be recruiting for the Trump administration during a pro-Trump voter registration drive near Increaser Stadium. The Trump campaign has developed a relationship with Brown in recent months. Alex Bruswitz, a Trump campaign staffer who helped organize Brown’s presence at Saturday’s rally, said the campaign sent him merchandise earlier this year after he showed support online. “It’s still news for famous athletes and celebrities,” Brusewitz said.
“Brown is the Pittsburgh Steelers’ all-time [second] receiver. Don’t you think he’s a backup? He’s one of the best players for one of the best franchises in history, he’s with us, he wants to help us, and he’s actively working to help us. “Brusewitz said he sees Brown’s endorsement as further evidence of a shift in social acceptance of being a Trump supporter. The former president was supported by rappers Kodak Black, Sexxy Red and Waka Flaka Flame, while other current and former NFL stars including Maxx Crosby of the Las Vegas Raiders and Lawrence Taylor of the New York Giants supported him on Trump.
“I think the resistance is dead,” Brusewitz said. “There is no animosity, hatred or destruction of culture that we used to have because celebrities were around us. “It allows celebrities to express their opinions and be politically honest.”However, Brown has had some controversy in his post-Steelers career. Last year, a warrant was issued for his arrest in Florida for failure to pay child support. He pleaded not guilty to assault in 2020 following a dispute with a moving company. She filed a lawsuit against a former coach she accused of sexually abusing her and a man who claimed Brown nearly hit his child with a piece of furniture thrown from a balcony.
“Former Pittsburgh Steelers are divided on presidential election,” wrote ESPN personality and former Steelers safety Ryan Clark. The others include Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown. It’s definitely a different group of people.” (Troy Polamulu, who has been with Brown-Clarke for years, replied: “I play second.”)Trump’s campaign and allies dismissed concerns that Brown would stand by him given his past. “That fan base loves him, this community loves him, he loves this community,” Brusewitz said. “I think it’s crazy that they put him here. “No one is perfect.”Dave McCormick, a Republican Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, said he thought Brown’s endorsement showed Trump’s ability to attract “non-traditional voters.”
“Honestly, I don’t know his story very well, but in the grand scheme of things, I think it would be better if more people from non-traditional parts of the coalition stood up and embraced President Trump. “It is,” he said. Voters who spoke to NBC News during Sunday’s voter registration drive were also unhappy about Brown joining Trump’s team. “I voted before I voted for Trump,” said Gregg Paladina, a school superintendent in New Castle, Pennsylvania, who supports Trump but will vote for Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro in 2022. “I don’t think you can judge . “Antonio Brown is not a role model, but most of the people who support Harris are not,” he said.
Doc Harris, the son of Franco Harris, who endorsed the vice president, said Brown has “unfortunately” made some “questionable” decisions in his post-Steelers career, but still praised the Steelers’ willingness to step in and to support Trump. In the political process. “My heart goes out to them,” she said. “I think it’s good for them to get involved. Now I don’t agree with them. “I’m not talking about the lessons my father taught me.”This isn’t the first time football and politics have mixed in Pittsburgh. Franco Harris, who played a starring role in the franchise’s four Super Bowl victories in the 1970s, has been politically active for decades, most recently campaigning for prominent area Democratic lawmakers.
His former teammate, wide receiver Lynn Swann, was the Republican candidate for governor in Pennsylvania in 2006. And the team’s late owner, Dan Rooney, shocked many when he publicly campaigned in support of Barack Obama in 2008. Rooney later served as Obama’s ambassador to Ireland. For Pisciottano, the difference between Trump supporters and the Harris Steelers is that Harris has a much more significant connection to Pittsburgh and the region than Trump. “Many of those who support Kamala Harris have lived in Pittsburgh for a long time or are deeply involved in our community,” he said. “These people understand Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania and their political beliefs or moral compass is influenced by the culture of Western Pennsylvania and that influences their political decisions. … “I don’t think Mr. Brown or Mr. Bell have that long of a relationship.”
