Never dawned on Don praise not part of job

Seven short days ago, we were all wondering what was going to come of LiAngelo Ball, Jalen Hill and Cody Riley. No one knew their fate. And as the UCLA team plane returned to Los Angeles, the country was forced to play the waiting game to find out what would become of the three freshmen basketball players who had been caught shoplifting from three stores in China.

Four days later, we got our answer when TMZ was on the scene at LAX with cameras flashing as the trio returned home. On Wednesday, the school held a press conference where it was announced that Ball, Hill and Riley would be put under an indefinite suspension.

The players also read statements apologizing, and thanking Donald Trump. But did they really want to? “Do you think the three UCLA Basketball Players will say thank you President Trump? They were headed for 10 years in jail!” Trump tweeted on Wednesday before the press conference.

And after receiving the praise he so desperately needed, Trump, as usual, took to Twitter again.

“To the three UCLA basketball players I say: You’re welcome, go out and give a big Thank You to President Xi Jinping of China who made your release possible and, HAVE A GREAT LIFE! Be careful, there are many pitfalls on the long and winding road of life!”

“Thank yous” are like invitations. Asking for one takes away the entire purpose of the gesture.

But when you elect a person who has the demeanor of a child to be president, these are the kinds of things you’re forced to deal with.

This week was yet another example of how Trump loves to use social media to stick his nose in sports while attempting to bully people into stroking his ego.

It’s a far cry from when Obama was doing NCAA Tournament brackets or playing pickup basketball with NBA stars.

Obama interacted with athletes. Trump wants to control them.

When Trump asked if he’d receive a “thank you,” it proved yet again that he has no idea what he signed up for when he took the presidential oath.

Being “thanked” isn’t in the job description, because any politician will tell you that taking public office is a thankless job.

But for those who were wondering, the JFK Library website has a list of the President’s actual duties.

The U.S. Constitution contains the only official “job description” for the President of the United States. According to Article II, Sections 2 and 3, the President:

1) Is the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces of the United States, and of each state’s militia when the nation has need of it

2) Has power to obtain information and opinions from heads of the executive departments

3) May grant pardons and reprieves for crimes against the United States

4) Makes treaties with other countries with the approval of the Senate

5) Appoints ambassadors, federal judges and heads of executive departments — all subject to the approval of the Senate; the President also has power to fill any vacancies that may happen while the Senate is in recess

6) Must report to Congress from time to time about the state of the union and recommend whatever measures he thinks are necessary

7) May call members of Congress together on extraordinary occasions, as well as adjourn their meetings when they cannot agree on their own about when to do this

8) Receives foreign ambassadors and other public officials

9) Is responsible for enforcing the nation’s laws 10) Issues commissions to all officers of the United States As you can see, neither requesting a thank you from a group of teenagers, nor asking that they do the same for a foreign leader is on the list. In less than a year, Trump has willfully forced sports and politics to incorporate. He’s called football players “sons of bitches,” tried to tell NFL owners how to run their businesses, and completely botched the tradition of championship teams making White House visits.

So, for all the people that are still screaming, “stick to sports,” how about changing your tune and telling your president to “stick to politics.”

But for those who believe that Trump should have the right to dip his nose in sports whenever he wants, this one is for you.

Wendell Brown is a 30-year-old former linebacker from Ball State who played in the Canadian Football League. Despite having no prior arrests and a surveillance video his friends and family say confirm his story that he didn’t hit or injure anyone during the incident, Brown has been detained in a jail in Chongqing, China for 14 months for getting into an altercation at a bar more than a year ago.

“I’ll thank him. If Trump helps us, if he helps Wendell, I won’t stop thanking him,” said Wendell’s mother Antoinette Brown to Yahoo Sports. “He helped get three basketball players who were guilty get out. I pray he’ll help get my innocent son out. And if he does, I’ll thank him and thank him and thank him.”

A black family in Detroit would do anything to give Trump the thanks he so desperately longs for.

Let’s see if the Commander-inchief is willing to do something that won’t benefit him for once.