Dear New York Giants,
It is with a heavy heart, a wounded remote control, and zero actual tears that I, former MSNBC host Joy Reid, must announce our breakup.
I grew up cheering for Big Blue. I wore the blue and red. I yelled at televisions, questioned play-calling, and defended bad seasons. Yet here we are, torn apart by the unthinkable: New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart introduced President Donald Trump at a May 22 event in Suffern, N.Y., for Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.).
Dart stood on stage and said he felt grateful, honored, and “pleasured” to introduce the 45th and 47th presidents.
Pleasured. He actually said pleasured, which may be the most Giants quarterback thing ever uttered outside a broken pocket. Then he led the crowd in a “Go Big Blue” chant.
The nerve.
From Fox News:
Former MSNBC host Joy Reid says she can no longer root for the New York Giants after quarterback Jaxson Dart introduced President Trump on stage.
Reid first called Dart an "idiot" for using the word "pleasured" to describe meeting Trump.
"I’m pleasured to meet, like what does that even mean?" she began. "First of all, he’s an idiot. OK, but what do you mean ‘you’re pleasured to meet the president?’ Like, is English your first language? What are you saying?"
She then explained why she must stop supporting the Giants
"I was, you know, really kind of repulsed as a Giants fan — former now — because the reality is Donald Trump is not a normal president," Reid told host Jack Cocchiarella. "Donald Trump is not an American president. Donald Trump is a wannabe king. And we’re in the 250th anniversary of our divorce from the king of England. And Donald Trump is trying to be a king."
Apparently, all the players who committed violent crimes were not enough to turn Reid away from the Giants. It took a player welcoming Trump on stage.
The man mixed football, patriotism, and manners in public, and somehow the sun still rose over MetLife Stadium.
I heard those words and felt repulsed, because modern fandom apparently requires a political purity test at the gate. A young quarterback showed respect for the office, spoke well of the country, and didn't ask me for clearance first.
Fired MSNBC host Joy Reid says she has always been a Giants fan, but now can’t root for the team since Jaxson Dart introduced President Trump. 0% chance she could answer basic questions on Giants fandom. pic.twitter.com/3Ag8mfFrar
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) June 1, 2026
How could the Giants allow such a reckless independence before consulting the emotional zoning board of cable-news alumni?
New York Giants outside linebacker Abdul Carter saw the video and posted that he thought it looked like AI, later saying he disagreed with Dart's choice. Then both men handled the matter like adults.
Dart and Carter talked privately, hugged at practice, and made clear they remained teammates. From NFL.com:
"Some things are bigger than football, and this is one of those things," Carter said Friday. "Jaxson is one of our leaders. He's the face of our franchise. He not only represents himself and what he does, but he represents all of us, and that goes for anybody who wears a Giants uniform, but if he chooses to align himself with a man like President Trump, it's my responsibility, based on what I believe and what I stand on, to not only show my teammates that I'm against that, but to show the world. And that doesn't mean that we have to spread hate. It doesn't mean that me and Jaxson hate each other, or we have beef. I sit next to Jaxson every day, every team meeting, we're close, we talk. As long as we make sure we got the same goal as a team and our goals in line, which they do, I feel like that's all that matters. So, I just want to move past this."
Awful.
I had prepared for drama, division, locker-room collapse, and several useful talking points. Instead, football players behaved with more emotional control than half the political class.
Dart later explained his decision without begging for forgiveness, saying he loves the country, respects the presidency, and comes from a family with military ties. He also said politics can be sensitive inside a locker room, which ranks among the more obvious truths ever placed before microphones.
Still, he didn't grovel, he didn't recite the approved language of public shame, and he didn't pretend respect for President Trump required a federal apology tour.
President Trump praised Dart after the appearance, calling him handsome and joking about his strong legs. The crowd laughed because public life used to allow laughter before every sentence got processed through a committee of professional offense.
Dart shook hands, said a few words, cheered for his team, and went home. No scandal occurred, no law was broken, and no end zone collapsed.
Yet I, in the grand tradition of people who confuse disagreement with betrayal, must now leave the Giants.
Forever.
So goodbye, New York Giants. I hope you enjoy your season filled with touchdowns, missed tackles, questionable third-down calls, and fans who don't need every player to vote like them before kickoff.
Maybe someday you'll field a team that meets my exact political standards, though such a roster may need to be assembled from a faculty lounge and a group chat.
Until then, consider my fandom officially transferred to whichever team keeps its quarterbacks away from microphones, presidents, and independent thought.
Formerly yours in performative heartbreak,
Joy Reid
Joy Reid’s Giants breakup over Jaxson Dart’s Trump introduction says more about political outrage than football. Big Blue lost a cable-news scold, Jaxson Dart kept his manners, and America got another reminder that some people can’t watch a game without checking the ballot first. Join PJ Media VIP and use promo code FIGHT for 60% off.
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