There remain Rangers fans that would, to this day, vote Nolan Ryan for President of the United States. And a certain former (George Dubya Bush) did indeed rise to lead the free world.
But now, in a very indirect way, the Rangers are again a player in politics as leading presidential candidate Donald Trump is invoking Globe Life Park in Arlington as a hot-button in his criticism of Republican opponent Jeb Bush.
Bush initially called out Trump’s use of “eminent domain” to build a limousine parking lot for an Atlantic City casino. Trump shot back on Sunday, telling campaign-trail reporters that …
“Eminent domain is a very important thing. Jeb Bush doesn't understand what it means, and if you look into the Bush family - I found this five minutes ago - they used eminent domain for the stadium in Texas, where they own, I guess, a piece of the Texas Rangers.”
Of course, it was George Dubya who owned a piece of the Rangers in the early 1990s when the stadium was financed and built.
“That doesn’t matter,” Trump insisted. “It was the Bush family. They used private eminent domain. He didn’t tell anybody this. So, I mean, he should have told people.”
One family fought the Rangers’ eminent domain price and ended up winning a lawsuit against the team and a $7 million award.
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I think we can all agree that the best place for the Rangers right now is in Surprise, Arizona, not the political headlines.
A native Texan who was born in Duncanville and graduated from UT-Arlington, Richie Whitt has been a mainstay in the Metroplex media since 1986. He’s held prominent roles on all media platforms including newspaper (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dallas Observer), radio (105.3 The Fan) and TV (co-host on TXA 21 and numerous guest appearances, including NBC 5). He lives in McKinney with his wife, Sybil, and two very spoiled dogs.
