President Trump ended this silly media-manufactured controversy last night: the US women’s hockey team will be coming to the White House. Both the men’s and women’s teams won gold at the Winter Olympics. Both beat Canada 2-1 in overtime, with the men winning their first gold since 1980. As they celebrated in the locker room Sunday, Trump called them, congratulated them, and invited them to the State of the Union. They accepted. The women’s team politely declined, likely due to scheduling conflicts. It is hard to get everyone together for an event on such short notice.
Whatever the case, it led to a ‘men bad, women good’ narrative, which is not only pathetic and predictable but also beyond annoying, especially coming from casual hockey fans who likely only got into the sport because of HBO’s Heated Rivalry. Sorry, woke ladies, this sport is conservative, and no, there aren’t that many gays in it. That reality check was entertaining.
The point is, when the president invites you, you should go, no matter what. Even if it was brain-dead Biden, though, that’s not a realistic scenario since Team USA wouldn’t have taken home double gold if he were still drooling in the Oval Office. Still, the principle remains; it’s why Bill Maher, who is no Trump fan, accepted an invitation to dinner. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
That is lost when a Republican is in office, but in 2012, Boston Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas refused an invitation to the Obama White House after winning the Stanley Cup, sparking a firestorm. Former MSNBC host Alex Wagner and guest Neera Tanden were not pleased at the time.
2012. MSNBC’s Alex Wagner and Neera Tanden rip Boston Bruins player Tim Thomas for not going to the White House after the team was invited by Obama for winning the Stanley Cup.
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) February 24, 2026
Tanden: “This is kind of the hyper-partisanship that just irritates everybody."
“It's like, just go… pic.twitter.com/I3z23sOzLU
“It's like, just go to the White House. You don't have to run an ad or cut a commercial or anything. Just go to the White House, take part, celebrate just like everybody else celebrates with Republicans or Democratic presidents,” said Tanden.
“Especially when you're getting honored,” replied Wagner.
Well, well, well, huh?
So, there you have it.