Pittsburgh mayor plans to skip Penguins' White House visit

By AP
Published

PITTSBURGH (AP) Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto says he's skipping the Pittsburgh Penguins' Oct. 10 White House visit because of recent tweets by President Donald Trump.

The Democratic mayor accompanied the NHL team when they met with President Barack Obama following last year's Stanley Cup championship.

But he Peduto says he's not going this year because of Trump's tweets criticizing NFL players for kneeling or otherwise protesting during the national anthem.

Peduto says the visit could bring negative attention to the city so he'll ''take a knee on this one and stay home.''

Peduto previously criticized Trump for pulling the U.S. out of the Paris climate accord and saying it was because he was ''elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris.'' Peduto reaffirmed the city's commitment to the climate agreement and called Trump's move ''reckless'' and ''unacceptable.''