Obama invites Cubs to celebrate World Series win at White House
The Chicago Cubs won the World Series early Thursday morning, defeating the Cleveland Indians 8-7 in 10 innings in Game 7 to end its 108-year title drought. And politicians out on the campaign trail paused to acknowledge the Cubbies’ historic victory.
President Obama, a Chicago native and notable White Sox fan, took to Twitter to congratulate the team and invite them to the White House before he leaves office.
It happened: @Cubs win World Series. That's change even this South Sider can believe in. Want to come to the White House before I leave?
— President Obama (@POTUS) November 3, 2016
Hillary Clinton, the Chicago-born Democratic nominee and self-described lifelong Cubs fan, caught the end of the game after her rally at Arizona State University.
According to a pool report, Clinton — who watched the Cubs clinch a spot in the World Series on her campaign plane — saw the final moments of the game “on an iPad tethered to an aide’s phone, live-streaming via Slingbox.”
“Her staff, including super-Cubs-fan and fellow Chicago-area native Connolly Keigher paced around nervously as the game went into the bottom of the 10th,” the pool report reads. “When the third out came, Connolly flew the W via a flag she had in her purse just for the occasion. She and HRC held it up in celebration.”
They did it! 108 years later and the drought is finally over. Way to make history, @Cubs. #FlyTheW -H
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) November 3, 2016
Like his fellow Chicagoans, former Obama adviser David Axelrod was on pins and needles during the game.
I CAN'T TAKE THIS!!!!!! #WorldSeries
— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) November 3, 2016
After the win, Axelrod, who guided Obama to consecutive election victories, already had his eye on next season.
Thanks, @Cubs, for this joyous, incredible ride!! And only three months until pitchers and catchers report 4 spring training. #LetsWinTwo
— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) November 3, 2016
The Cubs, though, have a connection to Republican politics through its owners, the Ricketts family.
In September, Joe Ricketts, son of Cubs owner Tom Ricketts, donated $1 million to a super-PAC supporting the GOP nominee, Donald Trump. (The super-PAC, Future45, released a series of Spanish-language ads urging Latino voters to think twice about voting for Clinton.)
Kellyanne Conway, Donald Trump’s campaign manager, congratulated the Cubs and the Ricketts on Twitter and predicted another kind of comeback next week.
Congratulations to @Cubs players, fans and the Ricketts family. Prepare for a second miracle on Tuesday. #winning https://t.co/Zdofu3bX4g
— Kellyanne Conway (@KellyannePolls) November 3, 2016
Predictably, there were no congratulatory tweets from Trump himself. During the Republican primary, the Ricketts family gave nearly $6 million to an anti-Trump super-PAC, prompting this tweet from the brash real estate mogul.
I hear the Rickets family, who own the Chicago Cubs, are secretly spending $'s against me. They better be careful, they have a lot to hide!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 22, 2016
As for that Election Day “miracle,” the Cubs have given Trump some reason for hope. After falling behind the Indians three games to one, FiveThirtyEight.com gave the Cubs a 15 percent chance of winning the World Series — a smaller chance than the site’s election forecast model gave Trump to win the White House.
According to the site’s latest forecast, Trump now has a 33 percent chance of a winning the election — or double the chances it had given to the Cubs.
