Ousted yesterday by ESPN, Curt Schilling appears to have changed his ideological tune. The former big league hurler has sent a shock through the sports media landscape by suddenly endorsing Bernie Sanders for president.
Widely known as a staunch Republican, it marks a swift departure for Schilling. That is, if you take the endorsement to heart.
“Yes, I tweeted out that I support Bernie Sanders for president,” said Schilling, who may have an ulterior motive. “Did I mean it? Maybe, maybe not. But look at how everyone’s reacting.”
Schilling, who previously endorsed Republican candidate Ben Carson, may have employed a brilliant stroke of reverse psychology here. It’s taken him over 10 years, but he finally realized that no matter what he says or does when it comes to political and social issues, his opinions are reduced to banal, sensationalist headlines. Now having been fired as a result of such backlash, he’s trying to make it work in his favor.
“Carson’s long gone so I need a new horse. If I endorse Trump or Cruz, the blogs will lazily paint me as a racist and a sexist. But if I endorse Bernie…” Schilling trailed off, allowing himself a smirk. “Well, you tell me what people are saying.”
A sampling of headlines seems to prove his point. They range from “Schilling supports dangerous fringe candidate” to “Schilling wants to end capitalism.” One particularly prosecutorial blog even declared, “Schilling loves Bernie, therefore hates America.” It took losing his job, but Curt Schilling may have figured out how to beat the media at their own game.
“It’s pretty great,” the former World Series MVP remarked. “I do one little thing that’s totally reasonable and people freak out. And these morons actually like Bernie! But they’re so blinded by their thirst to judge me and hating whatever I do, that they actually trashed their own guy!”
Pleased with the results of his ploy, Schilling may take it a step further. In fact, he’s already contemplating where to spread his stink next.
“Maybe I’ll post something in support of violent criminals getting paroled. I can see the headlines now, something snarky and unfunny that people will eat up, like, ‘Schilling wants leniency for murderers, who should clearly be put to death,’” the pitching guru mused. “It took me long enough to grasp, but now that I have, I’m going to use the media’s myopia and irrational hatred towards me to finally do some good.”