Trump A 'Fragile Egomaniac,' Jim Kenney Says After President Disinvites Philadelphia Eagles

President Donald Trump revoked his invitation for the Philadelphia Eagles to the White House on Monday, unleashing a tirade of remarks by various politicians against him.

One of the most vocal of the lot was Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney, who rebuked the president for disinviting his home team which, according to him, “embodies everything that makes our country and city great.”

“Disinviting them from the White House only proves that our President is not a true patriot, but a fragile egomaniac obsessed with crowd size and afraid of the embarrassment of throwing a party to which no one wants to attend,” said Kenney in a statement, adding that the Philadelphia Eagles were always welcome to tour the City Hall to celebrate their victory in the Super Bowl whenever they want to.

Senator Bob Casey Jr. (D-PA) also extended an open invitation to the Eagles to take a tour of the Capitol after the president’s decision.

“I’m proud of what the @Eagles accomplished this year. I’m skipping this political stunt at the White House and just invited the Eagles to Congress. @Eagles How about a tour of the Capitol?” he tweeted.

Other politicians also expressed their anger and disappointment at the president’s decision, as was evident on Twitter:

Trump’s decision to disinvite the Eagles was based on a number of factors such as some of the NFL team members’ refusal to adhere to the president’s request of standing for the National Anthem and that a number of African-American players had made up their minds not attend the White House event.

“The Philadelphia Eagles are unable to come to the White House with their full team to be celebrated tomorrow. They disagree with their president because he insists that they proudly stand for the national anthem, hand on heart, in honor of the great men and women of our military and the people of our country. The Eagles wanted to send a smaller delegation, but the 1,000 fans planning to attend the event deserve better. These fans are still invited to the White House to be part of a different type of ceremony — one that will honor our great country, pay tribute to the heroes who fight to protect it, and loudly and proudly play the National Anthem,” a White House statement reflecting the president’s remarks, said.

Following the statement, the title of the event on the official White House schedule was also changed to a more generic “Celebration of America.”

Hours after the release of the White House statement, Trump took to Twitter to post a sarcastic apology regarding the revoking of invitation:

“The Philadelphia Eagles Football Team was invited to the White House. Unfortunately, only a small number of players decided to come, and we canceled the event. Staying in the Locker Room for the playing of our National Anthem is as disrespectful to our country as kneeling. Sorry!” he tweeted.

At the same time, the Philadelphia Eagles also released a statement but chose to refrain from mentioning the controversy surrounding the White House invite: