Former MSNBC host Joy Reid said she is no longer a New York Giants fan after quarterback Jaxson Dart introduced President Donald Trump at a campaign rally using unusually phrased praise that Reid called offensive. Dart’s comments sparked online backlash, inclu
When Jaxson Dart stepped onstage to introduce President Donald Trump, it was supposed to be a quick moment—just a football figure offering a standard political nod.
To Joy Reid, it landed as something else entirely.
The former MSNBC host, now running a show on YouTube, said she’s no longer a New York Giants fan after Dart “gushed” over Trump at a campaign rally. “As somebody who grew up as a Giants fan, I was repulsed by Jaxson Dart,” Reid said.
Reid’s break with the team wasn’t about whether Dart supported Trump. It was about the language. Dart, introducing Trump, said: “What an honor, what a privilege it is to be here. And without further ado. I’m grateful. I’m honored. I’m pleasured to introduce the 45th and 47th president of the United States of America. President Donald J. Trump.”.
Reid seized on the word “pleasured.” “First of all, he didn’t say he was happy,” she said. “He said he was ‘pleasured’ to meet the president.”
On Sunday. Reid spoke with podcast host Jack Cocchiarella and pressed the point further. questioning both the meaning and the intent behind the phrasing. “Like, what does that even mean?” Reid asked. “First of all, he’s an idiot, OK?. What do you mean you’re pleasured to meet the president?. Like, is English your first language?. What are you saying?”.
She also said Dart’s defense—that he was simply showing respect to a president regardless of party—did not change what she felt. “I was really kind of repulsed as a Giants fan — former now,” Reid said. “Because the reality is Donald Trump is not a normal president. This isn’t praising the presidency or praising the idea of America or an American president. Donald Trump is not an American president. Donald Trump is a wannabe king.”.
The reaction has stretched beyond Reid. Joy Behar, the “The View” host, recently said Dart was “racist” for appearing with Trump.
Within the Giants’ orbit, Dart and teammates tried to present a united front afterward. Linebacker Abdul Carter addressed the fallout directly, telling reporters and viewers that football is not the only issue at stake. “So first off. I want to say that some things are bigger than football. and this is one of those things. ” Carter said. “Jaxson is one of our leaders. He’s the face of our franchise. He not only represents himself in what he does but he represents all of us. And that goes for anybody who wears a Giants uniform.”.
Carter’s message didn’t end with defense of Dart’s role inside the franchise. He also framed disagreement as part of his own identity and responsibility. “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.”.
Between Reid’s blunt personal break and Carter’s insistence that some issues extend beyond football, the controversy has turned into a public argument about loyalty, respect, and what it means to “represent” a franchise when a player chooses to stand beside a polarizing political figure.
Joy Reid Jaxson Dart New York Giants Donald Trump campaign rally MS NOW Joy Behar Abdul Carter U.S. politics