Tag: President Joe Biden

President Joe Biden had nothing but praise for Damar Hamlin during his important visit to Capitol Hill

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin is trying to make a difference for young athletes after his January health scare.

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin visited Capitol Hill this week to advocate for more schools having access to automated external defibrillators (AEDs).

Hamlin earned global attention when he collapsed during a January Bills game against the Cincinnati Bengals after a collision with wide receiver Tee Higgins sent him into cardiac arrest.

The Bills safety’s recovery from that shocking health scare has been one of sports’ true sources of inspiration this year, and Hamlin is now using his experience to advocate for the bipartisan “Access to AEDs Act.”

Bill co-sponsor Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla. explained that the legislation would “establish a grant program to provide schools with the funds to purchase and maintain AEDs, strengthen CPR training and develop cardiac emergency response plans.”

The bill also has support from the NFL, with commissioner Roger Goodell saying the effort would “no doubt will save countless lives of young athletes in the future,” per CNN.

To Hamlin, the legislation points back to the lifesaving medical treatment that he received in January from NFL medical staff.

“Sudden cardiac arrest happens to more than 7,000 kids under the age of 18 every year in our country – 7,000 kids every year, Hamlin said via CNN. “The majority of the kids impacted are student-athletes, and research shows that 1 in every 300 youth has an undetected heart condition that puts them at risk. For schools that have AEDs, the survival rate for the children from sudden cardiac arrest is seven times higher.”

Part of Hamlin’s advocacy involved meeting with President Joe Biden on Thursday. The president praised Hamlin for his “courage, resilience and spirit.”

Hamlin’s work aims to hopefully give grade school athletes having a medical emergency the same opportunity for the treatment he received during that fateful Monday Night Football game.

“The Access to AEDs Act will help ensure that schools are just as prepared and trained to respond in the time of crisis as those on the sidelines of an NFL game,” Hamlin said, per CNN.

Joe Biden threw shade at the Toronto Maple Leafs during Canadian Parliament address

President Biden got a playful dig in at the Toronto Maple Leafs while visiting Canada’s Parliament on Friday.

While addressing the Canadian Parliament on Friday, President Joe Biden threw a little shade at one of Canada’s most popular hockey teams.

After the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Philadelphia Flyers, 6-2, in January, Biden jokingly revealed that he wasn’t over seeing his Flyers lose.

With the president and the first lady, Dr. Jill Biden, fans of Philadelphia sports, Biden couldn’t resist taking a playful jab at the polarizing NHL team for taking down the Flyers.

“I have to say, I like your teams, except the Leafs,” Biden told Canada’s Parliament. “I’ll tell you why. They beat the Flyers back in January, that’s why.”

Biden got a standing ovation from a good portion of the folks in the room, with a few jeers from Leafs fans thrown in for good measure.

Biden has long supported professional teams from Pennsylvania, the state he calls home. Even as he traveled up north, he couldn’t help but stir the pot within hockey fandom.

At the very least, we know Gritty the Flyers mascot would be proud to see the president defend the Philly hockey team.

President Joe Biden offers stirring tribute to the late Franco Harris

President Joe Biden offered a stirring tribute to the late Franco Harris

President Joe Biden released a statement Wednesday paying tribute to Pittsburgh Steelers great Franco Harris, who died at 72 overnight.

The president and Harris formed an emotional bond, coincidentally, 50 years ago.

Biden’s statement from The White House:

It was this week fifty years ago when my first wife and infant daughter were killed and my two young sons were badly injured in a car accident while they were out getting a Christmas tree. I had just been elected to the U.S. Senate and I was in Washington when I got the call and rushed home to Delaware.

I rarely left my boys’ bedside until they got better. But one day I did to go shopping for them. When I returned, they were smiling for the first time since the accident. Art Rooney, the generous and honorable owner of the Steelers, had flown out with a couple of players, including Franco, and the tough as nails Rocky Bleier. Busy with their own lives, they took the time to be with my boys, sign footballs, and then left with no publicity. A small act of kindness that meant the world to us.

Sports have a powerful way of bringing people together. As families gather for Christmas this weekend, there will be countless Pittsburgh Steeler and Penn State fans sharing stories of Franco with their children and grandchildren who will discover his greatness on the field. But I know there will also be countless families like mine that will remember him for all that he did to lift our spirits when we needed it – in the most quiet, personal, and American of ways. We don’t have to ask. We show up. We reach out. We share a compassion that is a source of our enduring strength as a nation.

The last few times I saw Franco were in September and November of 2020 on the campaign trail in Latrobe and Pittsburgh. This week of all weeks, my family remembers him and keeps him close to our hearts.

May God bless, Franco Harris – a dear friend, a good man, and a great American.

May God bless the love of his life Dana, their family, and all of Steeler Nation.

Harris campaigned for Biden on Nov. 3, 2020:

We need Joe Biden. Joe Biden shows respect to every single American. And as Mrs. Rogers says, he’s kind. And remember what Art Rooney, the chief, always said, don’t mistake kindness for weakness. Joe Biden is a man who has already faced a pandemic, a man who has turned an economic crisis around. He worked with world leaders and our allies. Experience does matter. Being on the job and being up to the job matters.

President Joe Biden accepts role as Honorary Chairman for 2022 Presidents Cup

President Biden joins a list of world leaders who have held this position.

President Joe Biden will have a special role at the 2022 Presidents Cup at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Biden accepted an invitation to be the Honorary Chairman of the Presidents Cup, which is scheduled Sept. 20-25.

“We are thankful for President Biden’s acceptance of our invitation to serve as Honorary Chairman for the 2022 Presidents Cup with the event’s return to the United States,” PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said in a statement. “The Presidents Cup has a long-standing tradition of hosting world leaders, spanning several decades and many countries across all party lines, and the addition of President Biden to that list of men and women will help promote and grow the event worldwide and further our efforts in unifying people through the game of golf.”

Biden is a member at Wilmington Country Club in Wilmington, Delaware, host of this week’s BMW Championship, the second leg of the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

At the 2019 Presidents Cup, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison served in the role. Former U.S. Presidents Donald Trump, Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and Gerald Ford have also served as Honorary Chairman.

The U.S. Team has won 11 of the 13 Presidents Cups, and the only win by the International Team came at the 1998 event in Melbourne. A historic 17-17 tie came in 2003 when the event was held in South Africa.

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Russell Wilson, Ciara to host COVID vaccine awareness special Sunday night

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and his wife Ciara will host a COVID vaccine awareness special Sunday night on NBC.

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson often says his catchphrase of “no time to sleep” and when he does, he often means it. The NFL may be several months away from kicking off, but the 2020 Walter Payton Man of the Year winner’s charity knows no offseason.

Russell Wilson and his wife Ciara will be hosting a COVID-19 vaccine television special on Sunday, April 18 called “Roll Up Your Sleeves.” The purpose will be to raise awareness for the vaccine, encourage Americans to get theirs when they can and to help combat misinformation regarding the vaccine.

The Wilson’s won’t be alone. They will be joined by a star-studded cast of hosts and guest speakers, such as President Joe Biden, former President Barack Obama, his wife Michelle, Shaquille O’Neal, and even an interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci conducted by actor Matthew McConaughey, among others.

Russell Wilson clearly feels called to do his part to help people through the COVID-19 pandemic, and his work during the height of it was what helped him win the Walter Payton Man of the Year award. Wilson donated $1 million of his own wealth to Feeding America to help with food insecurity across the nation.

The “Roll Up Your Sleeves” special will air Monday night at 7:00 p.m. PT/ET on NBC.

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CBS to interview President Joe Biden during Super Bowl LV pregame

CBS will air an interview with President Joe Biden during the 4 o’clock hour of the Super Bowl pregame show

Will the president be interviewed on the Super Bowl pregame show … or won’t he? The annual mystery has been solved for Sunday’s game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

President Joe Biden will be interviewed during the pregame lead-up to Super Bowl LV. CBS honcho Sean McManus revealed the news Wednesday during a media opportunity.

The interview will air during the 4 o’clock (ET) hour.

And for a football nugget:

Sarah Fuller will speak during Joe Biden, Kamala Harris inauguaration

Sarah Fuller of Vanderbilt will deliver a statement during the inauguration. It was taped at Vanderbilt’s football stadium

Talk about going from soccer goalkeeper for an SEC championship team to loftier heights.

Sarah Fuller, who kicked for Vanderbilt’s football team after he title run with the Commodores’ women’s soccer team, will deliver a speech at the inauguration of President Joe Biden on Wednesday.

She’s expected to speak during the inauguration of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, who will become the first female vice president in American history. Fuller taped a video for the inauguration last week at Vanderbilt’s football stadium, Yahoo Sports’ Pete Thamel reported.

Attendance at the inauguration will be strictly curtailed because of the COVID-19 pandemic and security measures put in place after a violent mob supporting President Donald Trump invaded the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 as Congress was certifying Biden’s victory.