CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Indians pitcher Trevor Bauer has every right to defend President Donald Trump.
LeBron James has the same right to criticize the president.
Telling either of them to "stick to sports" is entirely un-American.
Piling up on athletes' Twitter mentions and jamming sportswriters' inboxes are countless versions of this silly and dangerous idea: that because a man or woman is a famous athlete, or he or she writes news stories about sports stars, their voice has no place in the American body politik.
This is of course ridiculous. Free speech doesn't stop at the baseline. Athletes are, or should be, as welcome to our discussion as plumbers and governors and comedy hosts and real estate moguls.
Is the financial wholesaler on the Stairmaster next to you at the gym any more qualified to bloviate about dismantling Obamacare than athlete is to take a stance on immigration or guns?
We are undoubtedly in a politically charged time in our country. Dissenting opinion are rejected out of hand. People are upset. They're mad because Trump is president. Or, they were so mad they went ahead and elected Trump, fueled by that anger.
Because Trump is in office, opposition to him, especially in the NBA, is going to get more attention. James' numerous stances against him, from his opposition to Trump's Muslim travel ban, to his starring in a thinly veiled political commercial for Nike demanding equality outside of sports, come to mind.
Stephen Curry basically called the president an "ass." Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, says all sorts of stuff he thinks about Trump, none of it is flattering.
There is at least one player on the Cavs who likes Trump. It's not for me to say who. I hope the player speaks his mind if he feels it's warranted.
Atlanta Hawks guard Kent Bazemore said he agreed with Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank that Trump was an "asset" to the country as president because he's a businessman (Curry took the opposite view of the same quote). Good for Bazemore.
Can we in the sports world do this better on occasion? Take a stand politically without bringing a gas can and blow torch to the podium? Sure.
Last week, Bauer, the Indians pitcher famous for flying drones and slicing fingers on said drones, was on quite a roll on Twitter in defense of Trump.
Bauer said some things that were not true, such as "almost all" of his teammates support Trump. He also said that former President Barack Obama was: A.) was "supposedly" not born in the U.S. (he was); and, B.) signed the the "exact same" order banning travel into the U.S. from seven predominantly Muslim countries (he did not).
Last month, James said "goofy votes" elected Trump. Nearly 63 million Americans voted for Trump; it's not a stretch to assume James offended that many people with his comment.
I'll end on a recent history lesson. Before Trump was elected our 45th president, and prior to his candidacy for office, he starred on a reality TV show and was a business mogul. He had no political or governing experience.
Trump built a base for himself by challenging then-President Obama on Twitter. Trump used that base to launch his candidacy and win the White House. He didn't "stick to the Apprentice."
Why should James stick to sports? He should have the same opportunity to move the country as Trump.
That opportunity is what makes America great.
The collision of sports and politics - Episode 10 of the Takes by The Lake sports podcast from cleveland.com
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