President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect J.D. Vance are scheduled to attend the annual Army-Navy Game in Landover, Maryland, on Saturday, and they’ll be bringing several guests who are sure to stir up some controversy. .
It will be the 125th meeting between the Black Knights and the cadets, but sources told Fox that President Trump will take Secretary of Defense candidate Pete Hegseth to the highly anticipated football game, while Vance He confirmed on social media that he plans to welcome Marine Corps veteran Daniel Penny as president. side.
Earlier this week, Penny was found not guilty in the New York City subway strangulation death of Jordan Neely, a decision that was criticized by some left-wing commentators and led to the link between crime and mental health. The grooves were embossed.
President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect J.D. Vance are scheduled to attend the annual Army-Navy Game in Landover, Maryland, on Saturday, and they’ll be bringing several guests who are sure to stir up some controversy. . (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images, left, Andrew Harnik/Getty Images, second from left, Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images, second from right, Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images, right.)
Daniel Penny found not guilty in subway chokehold trial
Hegseth is still fighting to earn a nomination to the top defensive role, and his emergence will be interesting given that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis will also be in attendance.
Mr. DeSantis was at one point touted as a possible replacement for Mr. Hegseth, but it is unclear whether he will be seated in the suite with President Trump.
Mr. Hegseth’s appearance would be a public show of support for Mr. Trump, as some senators still hold out on their commitment to confirming him.
Hegseth, an Army National Guard soldier and former longtime Fox News host, served in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and has been the focus of misconduct reports.
President Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense has denied the allegations of abusing women, but reached a financial settlement with the accuser in the 2017 incident to avoid lawsuits. He vowed that he would not drink “a single drop of alcohol” if he was confirmed as defense secretary.
President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, walks with his wife Jennifer Hegseth (left) to meet with Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. while giving a thumbs up. , at the Capitol in Washington, DC, on December 9, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
J.D. Vance allows Daniel Penny to play in Army-Navy game after acquittal in subway strangulation trial
According to reports, former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, who was nominated by President-elect Trump to be Director of National Intelligence, is also expected to attend the game, along with Speaker Mike Johnson. Gabbard, like Hegseth, faces an uphill battle for confirmation.
Meanwhile, Vance criticized the New York City prosecutor who handled the case for X’s post confirming Penny’s attendance.
“Daniel is a good person, but New York’s mob district attorney tried to ruin his life because he had a backbone,” Vance wrote. “I am grateful that he accepted my invitation and I hope he enjoys himself and realizes how much his countrymen admire his courage.”
Penny, 26, was charged with manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide in the May 2023 suffocation death of Neely, a 30-year-old homeless man with schizophrenia, on the subway. Neely stormed onto the train while high on a type of synthetic marijuana and screaming death threats. As K2.
Marine Corps veteran Daniel Penny will be in the game along with Vice President-elect J.D. Vance. (Rashid Umar Abbasi, Fox News Digital)
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Trump competed in the games as president in 2018, 2019 and 2020, and as president-elect in 2016.
President Biden has never attended the annual clash as president, although he has attended as vice president.
This season has been a banner year for both football programs, adding some buzz to the annual rivalry game. Both teams have a total of 19 wins this year, and a win against Air Force would award the Commander in Chief Trophy to the winner of Saturday’s game.
Fox News’ Aisha Husny, Paulina Dedaj and Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
Navy Midshipmen and Army Black Knights line up for the snap at the line of scrimmage during the first quarter of an NCAA football game at Gillette Stadium on Dec. 9, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
