While much of the presidential discourse right now revolves around Donald Trump, former President George W. Bush got quite the shoutout during Sunday’s Dallas Cowboys-Philadelphia Eagles game on CBS.
The 43rd President of the United States and former First Lady Laura Bush were on hand Sunday to participate in the coin toss as part of a larger celebration for Veteran’s Day.
CBS cameras panned to Bush during the game as announcer Jim Nantz explained the work that they do for veterans.
Tony Romo loves him some George W. Bush.
“One of the great human beings you’ll ever meet.” pic.twitter.com/OuZwLhLhay
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 10, 2024
“They always make it for this game, on the Salute to Service Weekend and did the coin toss today without a hitch,” said Nantz.
“He loves sports, he loves America,” added Romo. “One of the great human beings you’ll ever meet.”
Now, while any American president’s record can be argued about and dissected by critics, Bush’s legacy is especially fraught in the eyes of many.
Be it the unpopular Afghanistan and Iraq wars he oversaw, the hundreds of thousands of civilian deaths that occurred based on debunked claims of weapons of mass destruction, his handling of the Hurricane Katrina aftermath, the 2008 financial crisis, and many other policies, saying out loud that you think Bush is a “great human being” is something that is bound to lead to heated debate, and probably not a debate the NFL wants anyone having during a game.
The goofy and genial Romo probably doesn’t know any better and just thought he was saying something nice about a guy who has been nice to him. But anytime you heap too much praise or scorn on any former president on national television, you’re opening yourself up for criticism, justly or not.
[NFL on CBS]
