Donald Trump has a Super Bowl plan and will be the first sitting president to do it.
What’s “it”?
The U.S. Secret Service has announced in a statement Tuesday that it is preparing for Trump to watch the Kansas City Chiefs take on the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, Feb. 9, at Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans.
“Extensive planning and coordination have been in place to ensure the safety of all attendees, players, and staff,” Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement. “Security measures have been further enhanced this year, given that this will be the first time a sitting President of the United States will attend the event.”
Earlier, the White House announced that Trump will participate in a pregame interview that will air on Fox, which is televising the game from the Superdome. Trump’s interview will be pre-taped – and that is somewhat of an annual occurrence for sitting presidents.
But in-person attendance? This will be a first.
The Super Bowl is annually a star-studded event – and not just on the field, with celebrities commonly dotting the audience. Atop that list this year will surely be pop icon Taylor Swift, girlfriend of Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
Trump talks often about his sports fandom but in this case he has not indicated if he has a rooting interest in this game.
“I don’t want to say, but there’s a certain quarterback that seems to be a pretty good winner,” Trump said earlier this week when asked for a prediction, his reference of course to Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Trump has also in the past noted the public support he’s gotten from various members of the Chiefs organization.
“Congratulations to the Kansas City Chiefs,” Trump wrote on social media after the Chiefs won the AFC Championship Game. “What a GREAT Team, Coach, Quarterback, and virtually everything else, including those fantastic FANS, that voted for me (MAGA!) in record numbers. …”