Did KC-area GOP lawmaker need to ask Trump to keep World Cup in KC? | Opinion

President Donald Trump probably won’t yank the World Cup from Kansas City.

But he might.

The president, after all, is still making sounds about pulling World Cup matches from American host cities run by Democratic mayors. Which is awkward, because there are 11 U.S. cities involved in the tournament and just two — Dallas and Miami — are run by Republicans.

“The governors are going to have to behave,” he said this week during an Oval Office event to promote the World Cup, naturally. “The mayors are going to have to behave.”

FIFA controls where the matches are played. But FIFA President Gianni Infantino, standing next to Trump, this week seemed to agree that the president could still move World Cup matches for safety reasons. “Yeah, I think safety and security is the number one priority for a successful World Cup,” he said.

And, well, that’s ominous.

The good news is that Trump hasn’t directly threatened Kansas City or its mayor, Quinton Lucas, with the loss of matches.

It’s notable, though, that the alert level is high enough that Rep. Mark Alford, the Missouri 4th District GOP congressman who represents the KC suburbs, this week went public with his plea to Trump not to wreck all the time, money and effort the region has put into hosting the World Cup next summer.

“Stripping the city of this opportunity, after years of preparation and compliance, would have devastating consequences for the local economy,” Alford said in a letter to the president, “and for the hardworking families I represent.” Alford released the letter in a press release.

Alford flattered, then made plea

Alford’s letter to Trump is, honestly, a master class in how elected Republican officials must dance frantically to keep this president from harming their constituents.

You start with flattery. “I am writing today to thank you for your continued leadership and your unwavering commitment to restoring law and order in our country,” Alford writes.

Then you move on to bashing Democrats. “I am even prouder to see the decisive actions you have taken to protect American families from the failed policies of radical left-wing mayors.”

Then — and only then — do you move on to making your plea: “I strongly urge you to keep Kansas City as a 2026 World Cup host city.”

Alford is an ardent Trumpist, so all the scraping and bowing is no doubt quite sincere.

But all of this is the rhetorical equivalent of the personalized gold bar a Swiss delegation recently gave the president in order to persuade him to cut the super-high tariff rate on their country: You’ve got to massage Trump’s ego or shower him with gifts to get the job done. You can’t just make a case for what’s best.

It’s silly.

Moving matches would hurt red states

The bet here is that Trump won’t actually take the World Cup away from Kansas City. It would damage two red states — Missouri and Kansas — that have been solidly in his electoral corner, at least electorally, even if the city itself is dominated by Democrats.

It’s also likely that the president doesn’t want to be remembered as the host of the worst World Cup ever because he mucked up long-gestating plans, both of the event organizers and the thousands of soccer fans who will be traveling to and within the United States to root on their favorite teams. Can you imagine the chaos that would result? What GOP-led cities would even be prepared to take on the task on short notice? It would be a nightmare.

Ego will win out over Trump’s impulsiveness. Probably.

It’s not a sure thing, though, is it?

So it’s good that Alford is interceding on Kansas City’s behalf, and probably effective in a way that Lucas or folks such as Rep. Emanuel Cleaver never could be. Just as it was only Richard Nixon who could go to China, it might be that only MAGA congressmen can go to Trump.

Just remember it doesn’t have to be this way.

The fate of Kansas City and all the other Democratic-led host cities shouldn’t rest on the president’s whims, or proceed uneasily under the threat of his political punishment. Trump, though, has never met a playing field — in soccer, or in politics — that he hasn’t tried to tilt in his own favor.