WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� will huddle with allies and a Republican cause c茅l猫bre at Saturday's a chance to take in one of most stories rivalries in college sports while spotlighting his emerging national security team.
Trump is expected to be joined by Vice President-elect , , potential Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and others for the 125th matchup between service academies.
Also planning to attend is , a military veteran who was acquitted of criminally negligent homicide this week in the chokehold death of an agitated subway rider in New York. Penny was invited by Vance, who accused prosecutors of trying to 鈥渞uin" Penny's life by charging the Marine veteran in the death of in 2023.
Trump, who attended Army-Navy games as president-elect in 2016 and during his first terms, has been making an increasing number of public appearances before his inauguration on Jan. 20, 2025. He was accompanied by his family and Vance on Thursday as he after being recognized as Time magazine's person of the year.
Trump spent the weeks after the Nov. 5 election holed up at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida assembling a team to help lead his next administration. He and his aides have become bullish about Hegseth's chances of winning Senate confirmation. The Army combat veteran and former Fox News host's chances of becoming defense secretary had amid allegations of excessive drinking, and his views on women in combat.
DeSantis, a former Navy lawyer who competed against Trump for the Republican presidential nomination, is among the Trump has considered if Hegseth's bid fizzles.
Trump senior adviser Jason Miller said Friday in a Newsmax interview that Hegseth has 鈥渕ade it through the gauntlet." Miller predicted Hegseth will be confirmed.
鈥淭his is someone who鈥檚 literally been shot at on the battlefield,鈥� Miller added. "That鈥檚 the type of person who I want leading the (Department of Defense) because as we make these decisions about whether or not to put American troops into harm鈥檚 way, I want someone who knows at a personal level what that鈥檚 like before you go and send some young man or young woman into battle.鈥�
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is also expected to attend the game and bring with him a contingent of other GOP lawmakers vying for face time with the incoming president weeks before Republicans take control of the three branches of the federal government.
Johnson said he intends to discuss with Trump plans for a legislative package that could move through Congress next year with a simple majority in the face of expected Democratic opposition.
that Penny, a fellow Marine veteran, had accepted his invitation to be in Trump's suite on the Army side. Penny was cleared of criminally negligent homicide in Neely's death after a judge had dismissed a more serious manslaughter charge last week because the jury deadlocked on that count.
The case was a flashpoint in the long-standing debates over racial justice and as well as failures by New York City to address homelessness and mental illness, both of which Neely had struggled with.
鈥淒aniel鈥檚 a good guy, and New York鈥檚 mob district attorney tried to ruin his life for having a backbone,鈥� Vance said in a post on X. 鈥淚鈥檓 grateful he accepted my invitation and hope he鈥檚 able to have fun and appreciate how much his fellow citizens admire his courage.鈥�
Hegseth planned to be in a suite with some Medal of Honor recipients, according to a person familiar with Hegseth鈥檚 schedule.
Trump鈥檚 picks for Navy secretary, John Phelan, a businessman who , and for Army secretary, , an Iraq War veteran and former senior adviser to Vance, also are expected to attend, said the person, who was not authorized to publicly discuss those details and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Kickoff is after 3 p.m. EST at Northwest Stadium, home to the NFL's Washington Commanders, in Landover, Maryland.
Army (11-1) is ranked 19th in after on Dec. 6 to win the American Athletic Conference 鈥� the first league title of any kind in the team鈥檚 134-year history. Navy (8-3) was ranked earlier this season after starting with six straight victories
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Madhani reported from West Palm Beach, Florida. AP Sports Writer Noah Trister in Baltimore and Associated Press writer Farnoush Amiri contributed to this report.
Tara Copp And Aamer Madhani, The Associated Press
