Trump Supporters Attack Garth Brooks Online After Misunderstanding His ‘Sanders’ Jersey
Garth Brooks found himself on the receiving end of some vitriolic comments from Trump-supporting country music fans online after they misunderstood a jersey he wore onstage in honor of football great Barry Sanders.
MLive reports that Brooks hit the stage in Detroit over the weekend wearing a jersey that bore the name "Sanders," along with the number 20. The jersey was meant as a tribute to Barry Sanders, who had a legendary career with the Detroit Lions, but things went off the rails after pictures appeared on social media.
“I was lucky enough to be an athlete and to wear the same uniform as this guy wore in college. I was lucky to go to school with him. You guys got the greatest player in NFL history in my opinion in this jersey. I love this man," Brooks reportedly told the audience in Detroit, adding, "He’s also one of the greatest human beings that you’ll ever get to witness and be with. He’s a good cat. It’s an honor to wear this jersey tonight."
Brooks' tribute was heartfelt, but it was completely misunderstood in some quarters after he posted pictures of himself wearing the jersey online. As the Huffington Post reports, a number of angry Donald Trump supporters jumped on the photos, believing that Brooks was showing his support for Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, who is running for president in 2020 in an effort to unseat the former real estate mogul and reality TV star and current president.
A number of social media users excoriated the country superstar for his alleged support of the presidential candidate, calling him a socialist and lecturing him about keeping his politics separated from his entertainment career, though Brooks generally does exactly that.
"Weird. That a millionaire would like a socialist. Hey Garth are you going to distribute your millions?" one person wrote, while another proclaimed, "If this is truly Garth, very sad. You just lost a fan," adding a sad emoji and finishing, "Trump 2020."
"Love you, hate the shirt. Trump 2020," another person wrote, while still another angry fan stated, "If this is for Bernie Sanders, I’m done with you. I thought you were a true American that loves Our Country?"
Those comments led to other users trying to clarify the true meaning behind Brooks' jersey, which predictably devolved into a long string of back-and-forth posts. One Twitter user captured some of the best responses in posts that went viral:
Brooks has not commented publicly on the snafu, which has made headlines across a variety of media outlets including Fox News, USA Today, the New York Post, the Huffington Post and more.
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