Total Pro Sports
In a week where NFL headlines mostly revolved around training camp buzz, President Donald Trump just tossed a political agenda into the Washington Commanders’ front office.
On Saturday, Trump posted on his social media platform, demanding the team ditch the “Commanders” name and return to its former identity: the Washington Redskins.
“The Washington ‘Whatever’s’ should IMMEDIATELY change their name back to the Washington Redskins Football Team,” Trump wrote. “There is a big clamoring for this… Our great Indian people, in massive numbers, want this to happen.”
It’s not the first time Trump has seized on culture war flashpoints. But this time, he’s pointing fingers at Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris and calling for an urgent course correction.
Trump didn’t stop with Washington. He also targeted the Cleveland Guardians, urging them to revert back to “Indians.” He claimed times have changed and Americans are “a Country of passion and common sense,” suggesting public sentiment has shifted since the wave of name changes in 2020.
His argument?
That names like Redskins and Indians were never meant to offend, and that they honored Native American heritage. “Their heritage and prestige is systematically being taken away from them,” Trump added.
𝗕𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗚: President Donald Trump is calling for Commanders owner Josh Harris to “immediately” change the team’s name back to the Redskins.
“The Washington ‘Whatever’s’ should IMMEDIATELY change their name back to the Washington Redskins Football Team. There is a big… pic.twitter.com/mGIG0jITW0
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) July 20, 2025
This debate isn’t new. The Redskins name was officially retired in 2020 after mounting pressure from sponsors and advocacy groups who called the term a racial slur. At the time, team leadership said they wanted to move in a new direction. Since then, they’ve played two seasons as the Commanders under new ownership.
But whispers around D.C. suggest Josh Harris might be reconsidering. There’s been speculation that a return to a former identity, whether Redskins or another past iteration, could be part of stadium negotiations with city officials. That’s still very much in the air.
Veteran columnist Charles Krauthammer summed it up best back in 2013: “Times change. Words change. Things that used to be fine no longer are.”
But now, there’s a growing push from certain corners to undo all of that. Whether Harris listens to Trump or the league, the city, and his fan base remains to be seen.
