Politics, Sports

Jim Harbaugh Is Going After Donald Trump Over Legal Aid Funding. Yes, That's A Real Sentence.

Coach Harbaugh is not pleased with Donald Trump right now.

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Imagine the Ref is Trump . (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Imagine the referee is Trump (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Michigan Coach Jim Harbaugh has jumped into the political fray by hurling pointed criticism at Donald Trump over the latter’s budget plans for low-income legal services and even as I’m typing these words I cannot believe it’s actually real.

Anyway, Harbaugh previously expressed measured appreciation of Trump’s willingness to “fight the establishment,” something the two share if you define “fighting the establishment” as calling everyone “SAD!” on Twitter or whining about officiating.

But those good vibes appear to be a thing of the past. Earlier today, the famed coach took a break from his quest to finish third in Big Ten East for a third year in a row, to compose an official memorandum to the White House — otherwise known as a “Tweet” — to express support for the Legal Services Corporation:

And Coach isn’t wrong. As Jeena Greene noted in Litigation Daily:

The organization’s current annual budget—$385 million—is a minuscule portion of federal spending, hardly more than the cost of guarding Trump Tower plus the president’s weekend trips to Mar-a-Lago. But if the LSC is eliminated, the consequences for 1.8 million low-income people who rely on it for free legal assistance each year would be devastating.

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But why is Coach Harbaugh so exercised about LSC funding, when there’s invariably a satellite camp on the moon to plan (or maybe he’s already on that — my God, he’s found someone with a twenty foot vertical leap up there and he’s going to go get him, isn’t he)? Well, as SB Nation points out, Harbaugh serves on the LSC’s Leader’s Council, an arm of the LSC tasked with raising “awareness of the need for increased funding for civil legal services for the poor.” It’s his job to stare at people with the intensity of a thousand suns until they understand the importance of making legal services accessible to all. Which strikes me as a job Harbaugh would excel at and we should all be glad he’s working for such a good cause.

So far Trump hasn’t responded, but it’ll be hard for Trump to ignore a poke from such a high-profile Bear (get it? anyone?). Harbaugh, who orders a steak every day, and Trump, who ruins a steak every day, are two of the biggest personalities in America. If Trump can’t help himself but to lash back at Harbaugh, the energy released by the narcissistic collision could more than replace the Dakota Access Pipeline. This must happen.

Maybe Trump will push back, but if he doesn’t then honestly this is exactly why the LSC has a Leader’s Council. A dedicated public servant has a snowball’s chance in hell of swaying Trump, but a tough, football celebrity is just the sort of guy Trump might invite to Mar-a-Lago to discuss the finer points of Gideon. A note to every important interest out there — now is the time to sign up some terrifying behemoth to become the avatar of your program. Do you think the NEA would be in trouble if Conor McGregor was stumping for them?

Well, maybe not because he’s a non-Russian foreigner, but you get the point.

Jim Harbaugh calls out Donald Trump on Twitter over budget cuts to legal services [SB Nation]

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HeadshotJoe Patrice is an editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news.

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