Sports
Commentary: Bad Bunny is American; Coldplay is not. The right is selectively freaking out over the Super Bowl
President Trump told the New York Post that music artist Bad Bunny was a “terrible choice” to headline the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show and that the NFL’s selection of the Puerto Rican singer and rapper sows “hatred.”
Department of Homeland Security adviser Corey Lewandowski suggested that Bad Bunny loathes the U.S. “It’s so shameful that they’ve decided to pick somebody who just seems to hate America so much to represent them at the halftime game,” he told conservative podcaster Benny Johnson.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) said on Monday that Bad Bunny disseminates “anti-American propaganda.”
The upshot: Bad Bunny (aka Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio) is an enemy of the state. An outsider who doesn’t possess American values. A Super Bowl wrecker.
Bad Bunny took home multiple trophies from the 68th Grammy Awards last weekend in Los Angeles, including for album of the year. Very American, sir.
(Matt Winkelmeyer / Getty Images for the Recording Academy)
Heated debate around who is worthy to perform the halftime show is an American tradition (Prince, yes. The Red Hot Chili Peppers, no). But now, unsurprisingly, politics are part of that debate, so the mere fact that Bad Bunny is brown and Latino and sings in Spanish is seen by some as an affront to the right. Clearly the “Woke Bowl” is disrespecting the tough-on-immigration president, and in Español, no less.
But Bad Bunny is an American citizen, as are most people born in Puerto Rico after 1898, thanks to the Jones-Shafroth Act of 1917. Bad Bunny, born in 1994, made the deadline with 96 years to spare. If the fear is that foreigners are coming here to take our jobs and ruin beloved American traditions, there are plenty of nonnative artists to grouse about.
For decades, outsiders have foisted their foreign music upon us at the Super Bowl between commercials for Doritos and Budweiser.
The United Kingdom’s Phil Collins played the 2000 Super Bowl XXXIV Halftime Show, as did Enrique Iglesias, who is from Spain. The Irishmen of U2 stole jobs away from Americans when they played the 2002 Super Bowl. The following year it was sneaky Canadian Shania Twain and a sus character from England referred to only as Sting.
Then came bad hombre after bad hombre from the UK: Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones, the Who, Coldplay. And don’t even get me started on Shakira, gyrating her Colombian self into 2020’s Super Bowl LIV Halftime Show, or the following year, the Weeknd using his sweet voice to distract from the fact he’s Canadian.
Remember all the anti-immigrant furor around those aforementioned performances? Of course not — because there was none. And this year, if the delicately reunited U.K. duo Oasis was to pull things together for 2026 and play the Super Bowl, it most certainly wouldn’t inspire the same kind of vitriol.
The right remembers that Bad Bunny criticized the Trump administration for its handling of Puerto Rico’s hurricane recovery, and that that he has spoken out against ICE’s inhumane treatment of immigrants. But calling Bad Bunny a dissenter is too direct, too Stalinist. It’s better to cast doubt upon the singer’s loyalty to America via thinly veiled racist rhetoric.
Turning Point USA, the right-wing group founded by Charlie Kirk and helmed by his wife, Erika Kirk, following his assassination, has organized its own counter-concert called the “All-American Halftime Show”. It will star rap-rocker Kid Rock and country artists Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice and Gabby Barrett. The show is counter-programmed to compete with the Super Bowl halftime show, airing on X and conservative networks such as TBN and OAN around the same time as Bad Bunny’s set.
When the “alternative” show’s lineup was announced this week, Kid Rock took a jab at Bad Bunny in a statement: “He’s said he’s having a dance party, wearing a dress, and singing in Spanish? Cool. We plan to play great songs for folks who love America.”
Kid Rock isn’t known to wear dresses on stage, as Bad Bunny has done, but it’s unclear which songs of his he’ll play in the name of “loving America.”
Turning Point spokesman Andrew Kolvet said the show will reflect conservative values such as “faith, family, and freedom,” so Kid Rock likely won’t perform his 2001 track “Cool, Daddy Cool,” where he sings “Young ladies, young ladies, I like ‘em underage see / Some say that’s statutory, but I say it’s mandatory.” It’s also unlikely he’ll bust out his 2007 song “Lowlife (Living the Highlife)”: “I make Black music for the white man / Keep cocaine upon my nightstand.”
One thing is certain: He’ll continue to sing Trump’s praises, in English.
Sports
Knicks crush Cavaliers in Game 2, take commanding 2-0 lead in series behind Josh Hart’s career night
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The New York Knicks didn’t need a historic comeback to take Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals from the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday.
Instead, it was a dominant victory in regulation, 109-93, as the Knicks take a commanding 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series to Cleveland this weekend.
There was no hangover for the Cavaliers to begin the game, as they owned a 27-24 lead at the end of the first quarter. But the Knicks found their way into the lead by halftime.
Josh Hart of the New York Knicks dribbles the ball against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the third quarter in Game Two of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Square Garden in New York City on May 21, 2026. (Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
It was the third quarter where New York started to pull away, getting the lead up to 18 points as the Madison Square Garden crowd went ballistic. The Knicks went on an 18-0 run at one point as well, which was reminiscent of Game 1’s fourth-quarter comeback.
However, Cleveland wasn’t letting off the gas despite the deficit. The Cavaliers cut the 18-point lead in half with around 8:30 left in the fourth quarter, as New York struggled to buy a basket.
KNICKS STORM BACK TO SHOCK CAVS IN GAME 1 AS JAMES HARDEN’S DEFENSIVE PLAY COMES UNDER SCRUTINY
But once OG Anunoby knocked down a three-pointer from the left wing, things were back to normal for the Knicks crowd.
Mikal Bridges, who had a stellar night on both ends of the floor, hit a wide-open three with 6:12 remaining in the fourth that got the lead back up to 13 for the Knicks, and they would coast from there.
Karl-Anthony Towns of the New York Knicks celebrates after making a basket against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the third quarter in Game Two of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Square Garden in New York City on May 21, 2026. (Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
Jalen Brunson, the team’s All-Star point guard, was phenomenal in the comeback on Tuesday night, dropping 38 points. But Cleveland made their game plan known right away in this matchup, putting pressure on him to the point where he’d be giving up the rock in double-teams.
As a result, the Cavaliers were fine with Josh Hart taking shots instead. While the plan seemed to work in the first half a bit, Hart found his groove in the second and set a new career high with a team-high 26 points on 10-of-21 shooting, including 5-of-11 from three-point range. He also got on the board with seven assists, four rebounds and two steals.
Meanwhile, Brunson tallied 19 points and dished out a playoff career-high 14 assists for New York. And once again, Karl-Anthony Towns recorded a double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds, playing efficiently for Mike Brown’s Knicks.
With the lead back up to 18 for the Knicks, all starters were pulled with under two minutes to play, as the crowd gave their squad a standing ovation for a job well done.
The Knicks shot 52% from the field and only saw 14 foul shots all game long, but they held the Cavaliers to just 39% shooting as a team. Cleveland also failed to capitalize on key free throws late in the game, as they were in the bonus with over nine minutes to play. As a team, they shot just 69% (22-of-32) from the charity stripe.
Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks dribbles against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the third quarter in Game Two of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Square Garden in New York City on May 21, 2026. (Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
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Evan Mobley also had 14 points in the first half, but he curiously didn’t take a single shot in the second half for Cleveland. Donovan Mitchell matched Hart’s 26 points, though he shot 8-of-18. James Harden also went 6-of-15 for 18 points.
With the win, the Knicks have now won nine straight playoff games.
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SOUTHERN SECTION SOFTBALL PLAYOFFS
(Games at 3:15 p.m. unless noted)
SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE
Semifinals
DIVISION 1
La Habra at Etiwanda
JSerra at Norco
DIVISION 2
Whittier Christian at St. Paul
San Clemente at Mater Dei
DIVISION 3
North Torrance at Great Oak
Riverside Prep at Dos Pueblos
DIVISION 4
Oxnard at Monrovia
Burbank Burroughs at Mission Viejo
DIVISION 5
Patriot at Grace
Covina at Northwood
DIVISION 6
Granite Hills at Irvine
Hesperia Christian at Arroyo
DIVISION 7
Ramona Convent at Faith Baptist
Cathedral City at Edgewood
DIVISION 8
San Bernardino at Workman
Capistrano Valley Christian at Arroyo Valley
Note: Finals May 28-30 at Bill Barber Memorial Park, Irvine.
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William Davis, the football player for the Sam Houston State Bearkats who transferred to the school after playing one year with the West Virginia Mountaineers, reportedly died from a gunshot wound to the chest.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Virginia said it’s unclear whether it’s a homicide, and that the manner of Davis’ death is pending, according to TMZ.
Sam Houston State head coach Phil Longo released a statement on Sunday confirming the 22-year-old’s death.
William Davis participating in spring workouts at Sam Houston State. (Sam Houston State University)
“It is with heavy hearts that we mourn the loss of Will Davis,” Longo said in a statement. “Will was a beloved member of our Bearkat football family here at Sam Houston who touched the lives of everyone he knew.
“Will was an upbeat, positive, passionate young man who will be sincerely missed. Tanya, the kids and I are praying for Will’s family during this difficult time.”
Davis began his college career at Virginia Union, playing 19 games and recording five interceptions and one touchdown. Following the 2024 season, he transferred to West Virginia and played in one game for them.
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Former Western Virginia Mountaineers defensive back William Davis died in May 2026. (West Virginia University)
Davis graduated from West Virginia with a master of science in sports management in 2025. He was set to compete for a roster spot at Sam Houston State, and said the campus felt like home.
“Sam Houston felt like home from the moment I first set foot on campus,” he said, via Nilson Sports. “As a Virginia kid that had played every snap of football in my life within driving distance of home, it was important to me that I’d play somewhere where I fit seamlessly into the culture if I was going to be so distant geographically.”
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“The ability to play for Coach Dovonte Edwards, someone with experience playing in the NFL that can show me the blueprint of what it looks like to become the type of player who can achieve success at the highest level, was a motivating factor for me as well.”
Fox News’ Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.
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