Good News Everyone! No More "Sponsored Patriotism"!

[Formaldehyde]

Congress Bars Pro Teams From Profiting Off Troops At Sports Events

Calling “pay for patriotism” promotions at major sporting events “marketing gimmick,” Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) has helped convince Congress to ban the kind of mid-game salutes to troops that enabled NFL teams to pocket a reported $5.4 million of taxpayer money between 2011 and 2014.

The National Defense Authorization Act, which NJ.com reports was "agreed to by congressional negotiators" on Monday, will prevent professional teams and leagues from making money off of celebrating the military at halftimes and quarter breaks.

Under the new law, the Pentagon will be forbidden from using taxpayer funds on what has been called “sponsored patriotism." As a result, Defense Department-funded recruiting practices like “Hometown Heroes” -- through which soldiers are honored on jumbotrons in the middle of sporting events -- will be barred from arenas and stadiums.

“I applaud my colleagues for recognizing and agreeing that demonstrating appreciation and standing in patriotic solidarity with our military should not come with a price tag," Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-N.J.) said.

Along with Hometown Heroes, Military.com listed profiting from“on-field flag roll outs, pre-game color guard ceremonies, half-time soldier recognition ceremonies and National Guard sponsored high-school player of the week recognitions” as included under the umbrella term “sponsored patriotism.”

The issue came to light last spring when Flake called out the $377,500 that the New York Jets had earned in a three-year span through what -- on the surface -- appeared to simply be acts of patriotism.

"[G]iving taxpayer funds to professional sports teams for activities that are portrayed to the public as paying homage to U.S. military personnel would seem inappropriate," Flake wrote last May in a letter to Chief of the National Guard Bureau General Frank Grass and Defense Secretary Ash Carter. "Such promotions conjure up feelings of patriotism and pride for most sports fans, and the revelation that these are in fact paid arrangements is disappointing."

Brian McCarthy, an NFL spokesman, responded to Flake in June by claiming that “[t]his amendment paints a completely distorted picture of the relationship between NFL teams and our military,” and that “[m]ilitary spending on recruiting efforts should not be confused with community programs."

It remains to be seen, however, whether the NFL and other major leagues will continue to spend timeouts saluting the troops and honoring our flag without such a strong monetary incentive to do so.

US Defense Department paid 14 NFL teams $5.4M to honor soldiers

According to a report from Christopher Baxter and Jonathan Salant of NJ.com, the Department of Defense has paid 14 different NFL teams a total of $5.4 million over the last four years in exchange for patriotic displays at games.

According to a report from Christopher Baxter and Jonathan Salant of NJ.com, the Department of Defense has paid 14 different NFL teams a total of $5.4 million over the last four years in exchange for patriotic displays at games.

Per NJ.com's report, "U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz) last week called out the New Jersey Army National Guard for the spending, which, in part, paid for a segment at Jets home games in which soldiers were featured on the big screen, thanked for their service and given tickets to the game."

The National Guard responded by asserting that it was a useful recruitment tool.

"Promoting and increasing the public's understanding and appreciation of military service in the New Jersey Army National Guard increases the propensity for service in our ranks and garners public support for our Hometown Team," Guard spokesman Patrick Daugherty said.

The Jets were joined by the Falcons, Ravens, Bills, Bengals, Browns, Packers, Colts, Chiefs, Vikings and Steelers in receiving multiple payouts, while the Cowboys, Dolphins and Rams were each one-time recipients. The team that has received the most money from this practice is the Falcons, with a total of $1,049,500 coming their way in five payments.

Here's the full list from NJ.com:

ATLANTA FALCONS FOOTBALL CLUB, LLC W912JM11C0001 $70,000
ATLANTA FALCONS FOOTBALL CLUB, LLC W912JM11C0021 $250,000
ATLANTA FALCONS FOOTBALL CLUB, LLC W912JM13C0013 $315,000
ATLANTA FALCONS FOOTBALL CLUB, LLC W912JM14P0131 $114,500
ATLANTA FALCONS FOOTBALL CLUB, LLC W912JM12P0091 $300,000
BALTIMORE RAVENS LP W912K611P0170 $85,000
BALTIMORE RAVENS LP W912K613P0114 $195,000
BALTIMORE RAVENS LP W912K613P0114 $89,500
BALTIMORE RAVENS LP W912K612P0123 $250,000
BALTIMORE RAVENS LP W912K611P0170 $265,000
BUFFALO BILLS, INC. W912PQ13M0113 $250,000
BUFFALO BILLS, INC. W912PQ14M0233 $150,000
BUFFALO BILLS, INC. W912PQ12M0147 $250,000
BUFFALO BILLS, INC. FA448411P0134 $29,000
CINCINNATI BENGALS, INC. W9136412P0277 $67,000
CINCINNATI BENGALS, INC. FA448413P0049 $4,960
CINCINNATI BENGALS, INC. W9136411P0386 $67,000
CLEVELAND BROWNS FOOTBALL COMPANY, LLC FA448412P0135 $10,000
CLEVELAND BROWNS FOOTBALL COMPANY, LLC FA448411P0136 $12,500
DALLAS COWBOYS FOOTBALL CLUB LTD W912L113P0015 $62,500
FORTY NINERS FOOTBALL COMPANY LLC W912LA14P0055 $125,000
GREEN BAY PACKERS, INC. W912J211P0058 $400,000
GREEN BAY PACKERS, INC. W912J212P0097 $150,000
GREEN BAY PACKERS, INC. W912J214P0091 $50,000
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS, INC. W912L914P0144 $200,000
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS, INC. W912L912P0122 $200,000
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS, INC. FA448412P0145 $20,000
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS, INC. W912L911P0070 $200,000
KANSAS CITY CHIEFS FOOTBALL CLUB, INC. W912NS11P0157 $125,000
KANSAS CITY CHIEFS FOOTBALL CLUB, INC. W912NS11P0157 $125,000
MIAMI DOLPHINS, LTD. FA304712P0139 $20,000
MINNESOTA VIKINGS FOOTBALL, LLC W912LM11P0155 $230,000
MINNESOTA VIKINGS FOOTBALL, LLC W912LM12P0092 $225,000
MINNESOTA VIKINGS FOOTBALL, LLC W912LM12P0092 $150,000
NEW ORLEANS LOUISIANA SAINTS, L.L.C. W912NR13C0001 $165,375
NEW ORLEANS LOUISIANA SAINTS, L.L.C. W912NR13C0001 $150,000
NEW ORLEANS LOUISIANA SAINTS, L.L.C. W912NR11P0220 $100,000
NEW YORK JETS LLC W912KN11P0105 $50,000
NEW YORK JETS LLC W912KN13P0070 $115,000
NEW YORK JETS LLC W912KN12P0129 $97,500
NEW YORK JETS LLC W912KN14P0123 $115,000
PITTSBURGH STEELERS SPORTS INC W9124D13P0338 $9,000
PITTSBURGH STEELERS SPORTS INC FA448414P0037 $27,000
ST. LOUIS RAMS, LLC THE W912NS14P0142 $60,000

Is this a great country? Or what?

 

[warpus]

It's a welfare state for the rich and the sports teams and their owners are cashing in.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

How is this "good news"?

I personally would classify it as "who cares"?

The military markets. Big deal. Everyone knows it. They run TV commercials, print ads, this thread will probably wind up with a banner ad for your local recruiter across the top.

 

[JollyRoger]

Support the troops supporting are teams you damned commies.

 

[warpus]

The Kansas City Royals had a friggin stealth bomber fly over the stadium when they played the Blue Jays.

I rolled my eyes. It was way over the top. Giant American flag, soldiers, salutes, patriotic songs, might as well have had George Bush waterboarding a guy in a turban during the 7th inning stretch.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

The stealth bomber is a local resource that Kansas City is proud of. I see nothing wrong with a flyover. Cool plane.

 

[JollyRoger]

Was it a U..S. military stealth bomber or one given to the local police force to help provide support in executing no-knock warrants?

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Was it a U..S. military stealth bomber or one given to the local police force to help provide support in executing no-knock warrants?

The military still has all those. Once production gets rolling on the new generation LRSB they may start giving out B52s though.

 

[plarq]

Military jet for flying over a stadium in the MLB? This is waste of money. They should be bombing schools in the Middle East!

 

[Timsup2nothin]

The B2 is a threat, not an action. To the best of my knowledge they have never been used to drop a bomb in anger on anyone. Personally, I'm fine with that.

 

[JollyRoger]

I think Trump's wall will be high enough that we won't be able to fly our planes out of the country.

 

[Formaldehyde]

The Kansas City Royals had a friggin stealth bomber fly over the stadium when they played the Blue Jays.

I rolled my eyes. It was way over the top. Giant American flag, soldiers, salutes, patriotic songs, might as well have had George Bush waterboarding a guy in a turban during the 7th inning stretch.

What is so ironic is that prior to 9/11 none of the sports teams lined up for the National Anthem, and many of the fans didn't even bother to stand up.

During NASCAR car races in particular, team members would act like it wasn't even playing. They would be going about their pre-race activities as though the announcer was discussing the weather forecast.

But all that miraculously changed merely because 19 terrorists flew into 3 buildings.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

What is so ironic is that prior to 9/11 none of the sports teams lined up for the National Anthem, and many of the fans didn't even bother to stand up.

While this may have been true of sporting events held in basements in Florida, it was not observed on a widespread basis.

 

[warpus]

National anthems for club teams don't even make sense to begin with.

 

[Formaldehyde]

While this may have been true of sporting events held in basements in Florida, it was not observed on a widespread basis.

And this is based on your supposed anecdotal collection of "sporting events held in basements" in California?

All you had to do was to attend any professional sports event in the US prior to 9/11 to see for youself what it was obviously like.

National anthems for club teams don't even make sense to begin with.

Indeed. Which is why they were so ignored by so many prior to 9/11.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

And this is based on your supposed anecdotal collection of data "held in basements" in California?

On 9/11/2001 I was a season ticket holder for two professional sports teams and worked in the athletic department of a state university. If your sweeping statement was based on something other than your own experience feel free to share.