President Trump Passes On Filling Out NCAA Brackets
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Unlike his predecessor, President Trump will not be filling out a NCAA March Madness bracket this year live on air.
The network reportedly had reached out to Trump's staff inviting the president to fill out a bracket on camera like Barack Obama had during his eight years in the White House, but ESPN spokesman Mike Soltys said in a statement the Trump administration "respectfully declined."
However, White House spokeswomen Hope Hicks said in an email to the Washington Post that Trump "look[s] forward to working with ESPN on another opportunity in the near future", though no additional details were given.
Obama would host an ESPN crew every March and would fill out his bracket live on air for both the men's and women's tournaments. Of those brackets filled out, Obama's 2015 brackets for the men's and women's tournaments now are located in the National Museum of American History.
ESPN's Andy Katz, who formed the idea of "Barack-etology", said it "was a success because it was clear he was a fan of the sport and the NCAA tournament, like millions of other Americans."
