Posted in: NBC, NFL, Sports, Super Bowl, TV | Tagged: bad bunny, super bowl

NFL Commissioner on Bad Bunny/Halftime Show, Super Bowl/ICE Agents

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Bad Bunny, the Super Bowl LX Apple Music Halftime Show, and if ICE will be in and around the stadium.

With only days to go until the New England Patriots take on the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell addressed two of the biggest burning issues during a press conference on Monday – and neither of them had anything to do with what's going down on the field. The announcement that global phenomenon Bad Bunny would headline the league, Roc Nation, and Apple Music's Super Bowl LX Apple Music Halftime Show wasn't exactly met with a warm welcome by the Trump Administration and the MAGA faithful. So much so that Turning Point USA is holding a counter halftime show, with Kid Rock set to headline "The All-American Halftime Show" (though it should be noted that Bad Bunny is from Puerto Rico, which is a part of the U.S.). Bad Bunny's remarks during Sunday night's Grammy Awards, when he began his speech with "ICE out, did little to calm the MAGA faithful.

"I think Bad Bunny, and I think that was demonstrated last night, is one of the great artists in the world, and that's one of the reasons we chose him," Goodell responded when asked if he expects Bad Bunny to make any political statements during his performance. "But the other reason is he understood the platform he was on and that this platform is to use to unite people and to be able to bring people together with their creativity, with their talents, and to be able to use this moment to do that. I think artists in the past have done that. I think Bad Bunny understands that, and I think he'll have a great performance," he added.

As for the rumblings that began last October about Trump's Department of Homeland Security sending ICE agents to the stadium before and during the game, Goodell noted that the game has been designated a high-security event for years and that he hasn't seen any ICE-related changes in this year's security plan."Security is obviously one of the things we focus on the most. It's a SEAR [Special Event Assessment Rating] 1 level event that involves unique assets at the federal level, state level, and the local level, all working together," the NFL Commissioner explained. "I see no change in that, in the preparations for the Super Bowl. We've not seen that. We're working with all three of those levels and doing everything we can to make sure it's a safe environment, and the federal government is a big part of that, including this administration and every other administration before that. I think SEAR 1 is probably the category we've had since at least the turn of the century, if not before that. I just anticipate we'll continue to do the work to make it the safest event."

After sharing that he was very happy performing during the big game, Bad Bunny noted during his monologue as host of NBC's Saturday Night Live Season 51 premiere that everyone was happy about it—including FOX "News." From there, we got a badly edited video of FOX "News" anchors saying that they're thrilled and that Bad Bunny should be president. "Especially all of the Latinos and Latinas in the world here in the United States who have worked to open doors," Bad Bunny shared in Spanish following the clip. "It's more than a win for myself, it's a win for all of us. Our footprints and our contribution in this country, no one will ever be able to take that away or erase it." Bad Bunny ended his monologue by joking that anyone who didn't understand what he just said should take the next four months to learn.

"What I'm feeling goes beyond myself," said Bad Bunny in a statement when the news was first announced. "It's for those who came before me and ran countless yards so I could come in and score a touchdown… this is for my people, my culture, and our history. Ve y dile a tu abuela, que seremos el HALFTIME SHOW DEL SUPER BOWL." Roc Nation founder Jay-Z added, "What Benito has done and continues to do for Puerto Rico is truly inspiring. We are honored to have him on the world's biggest stage."

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