Even as the White House is still slamming the National Football League for its stance on players protesting during the playing of the national anthem, there has been a meeting of minds between the league and the administration on at least one issue.
The White House and the NFL have found common ground on the issue of putting a halt to the expansion of sports betting, according to Pro Football Talk.
Trump’s solicitor general has filed a brief in the U.S. Supreme Court in support of a federal law that prohibits sports gambling. The filing shores up the league’s position against expanding gambling in a lawsuit filed against the State of New Jersey which had announced a plan to allow residents to gamble on games.
The case is one of those the U.S. Supreme Court has elected to hear in its upcoming session.
The administration’s action comes ahead of the Supreme Court’s coming session during which the nation’s highest court has elected to hear Christie v. NCAA. It is a case that pits New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie against all the major sports leagues — both professional and college — that want to stop the Garden State from allowing sports betting.
However, the NFL’s position seems counter to public opinion. A recent Washington Post article noted that a majority of Americans support legalized sports betting with 55 percent approving of the idea while only 35 percent opposed the expansion.
This result is a major flip-flop from that seen 25 years ago when 56 percent opposed sports gambling while 41 percent approved in the 1993 Gallup poll on the issue.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.