US soccer star Alex Morgan plans to decline possible invite from Trump White House after World Cup
U.S. soccer star Alex Morgan who is gearing up to defend her team's World Cup title in France next month said that she was prepared to decline a possible invitation to visit President Donald Trump at the White House if America were to emerge winners again.
Morgan has previously been very vocal about Trump and the policies of his administration. In a lengthy profile by Time, Morgan stated that she doesn't stand for the values the current President stands for.
“I don’t stand for a lot of things the current office stands for,” she said, adding that she doesn’t care for the administration’s policies about separating migrant families at the U.S.-Mexico border.
While it still is unclear if the team would be invited if they win, Morgan has maintained her stand saying that she would still not go if an invite does pop up.
As reported by Fox News, Morgan said, “We don’t have to be put in this little box. There’s the narrative that’s been said hundreds of times about any sort of athlete who’s spoken out politically. ‘Stick to sports.’ We’re much more than that, OK?”
Previously, the 29-year-old forward had tweeted that she was in "shock and disbelief" over his decision to suspend immigration from seven Muslim-majority nations and has even spoken out several times against Trump's administration in the past.
She even stated that Hillary Clinton would have beaten Trump in the election, “but at the same time, we have to accept what most of the nation has voted for, and that’s to elect Donald Trump.”
Since Trump's election in 2016, visits to the White House by championship-winning sports teams have seen a decline.
Recently, Alex Cora, the Puerto Rican manager of the Boston Red Sox, refused an invitation to the White House. Boston's three African-American players—2018 American League Most Valuable Player Mookie Betts, pitcher David Price, and center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr—also skipped the event.
According to TheSpun, Morgan, who is 29 years old, has been a member of the USWNT since 2010. She’s scored 101 goals in 162 appearances. She’s one of the best players in the world.
Morgan and her team start their title defense on June 11 against Thailand and will then take on Chile and Sweden. The World Cup kicks off on June 7.