A bunch of USA soccer fans thinks Tim Howard deserves his own airport.
By JONATHAN TOPAZ | 7/2/14 7:53 AM EDT
Updated: 7/2/14 5:42 PM EDT
A bunch of USA soccer fans thinks Tim Howard deserves his own airport.
On
Tuesday evening, they launched an official White House petition to
rename Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport after the Team USA
goalkeeper, who set a World Cup record by saving 16 shots during
Tuesday’s 2-1 loss to Belgium.
“Whereas Tim Howard has shown himself to be a national
treasure, Minister of Defense, Friend of [Vice President] Joe Biden, and
the holder for the record of most saves in a World Cup match;
Therefore, we politely request that we rename the airport to recognize
his accomplishments, and meritorious service to the United States of
America,” the petition reads.
Howard kept Team USA in the Round of 16 game against Belgium, who
tested him early and often. The keeper had 11 saves after regulation, in
which he helped keep the Belgians off the board for a 0-0 tie heading
into extra time.
If the petition receives 100,000 signatures, the Obama administration
will offer an official response, per the “We the People” White House
initiative launched in 2011. The petition currently currently has 1,987
signatures and will need to reach the 100,000 mark by July 31 to earn a
response. Earlier this year, the administration declined another
sports-related petition, this one to make Major League Baseball’s
Opening Day a national holiday.
Howard’s performance also led prankster to temporarily change the
Wikipedia page for the Secretary of Defense of the United States of
America, which one fan changed to identify Howard as the incumbent
secretary since July 1 and included a picture of the goalie. The post
was quickly fixed the change back to Secretary Chuck Hagel.
Howard received praise from many administration officials and lawmakers after his performance, with Vice President Joe Biden tweeting that he was the “most valuable player in the World Cup” and Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) writing on Twitter that he was pushing the keeper to run for president in 2016.
After the game, Howard called the loss “heartbreaking.”
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