Jeb Bush defends the Washington Redskins' controversial name

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Lawsuits, political pressure has mounted for years over football team's moniker in nation's capital, but owner Daniel Snyder has vowed to keep it
Obama administration has weighed in to deny the team federal land for a new stadium unless the name changes
Bush joins other GOP politicos in siding with 'Skins and resisting change

By J. Taylor Rushing, U.s. Political Reporter, For Dailymail.com

Published: 10:39 EST, 30 September 2015 | Updated: 15:37 EST, 30 September 2015

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GOP presidential candidate Jeb Bush is defending the controversial team name for the Washington Redskins, saying the longtime moniker should stay despite calls for its retirement.

Bush, speaking on a national SiriusXM radio interview set to be released on Friday, compared the controversy over the Redskins to a scrap over the Florida State Seminoles' team name in when Bush was governor of Florida.

'I don’t think it should change,' Bush said on Sirius XM's 'The Arena' show, a new program aimed at mixing sports with politics.

'But again, I don’t think politicians ought to be having any say about that, to be honest with you. I don’t find it offensive. Native American tribes generally don’t find it offensive.'

Actually, the National Congress of American Indians, which bills itself as the “oldest, largest and most representative” Native American organization, has been trying to get the Redskins to change the name since 1968, arguing the name is associated with racism and genocide.

One-time Republican presidential front-runner Jeb Bush said in a national radio interview to be released Friday that he endorses the idea of the Washington Redskins football team keeping their name despite political pressure

The Redskins name and logo has been under fire for years from Native American groups who call it racially offensive

But Bush - a onetime candidate for NFL commissioner - cited the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s decision in 2005 to let Florida State keep its Seminoles nickname. The school is based in the state capital of Tallahassee.

At the time, the name was supported by the official Seminole tribes of Florida and Oklahoma.

'We had a similar kind of flap with FSU, if you recall, the Seminoles. And the Seminole tribe itself kind of came to the defense of the university and it subsided.

'It’s a sport, for crying out loud. It’s a football team. Washington has a huge fan base - I’m missing something here, I guess.'

The Redskins name and logo - a staple of Washington since 1937 - has been embraced and consistently defended by team owner Daniel Snyder, who has repeatedly vowed he will never bow to pressure to retire it.

Other prominent Redskins names such as former coach Joe Gibbs and quarterback Joe Theismann have also lept to its defense.

Redskins owner Daniel Snyder has vowed to never change his team's name, which backs him into somewhat of a corner since the Obama administration has likewise vowed to deny the team federal land for a new stadium until the name is gone

Bush, shown here campaigning in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, was once a leading contender for NFL commissioner yet said he is unaware of any offense that Native American groups have to the Washington Redskins team name

However, in 2014, 50 U.S. senators, all Democrats, signed a letter to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, urging him to push Snyder to change the name.

Also last year, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office stripped the Redskins of its federal trademark status, calling the team name 'disparaging.'

The decision had no immediate effect since the team immediately filed an appeal, which could take years to resolve. It also doesn't prohibit the team from continuing to use the name, as it has done.

However, this summer the Obama administration laid a more difficult hurdle in front of Snyder.

The Florida State Seminoles logo bears a strong resemblance to that of the Redskins, although the name and logo survived a 2005 controversy after the Seminole tribes in Florida and Oklahoma endorsed its use

The Redskins name and logo have been a part of Washington sports since 1937, although the federal government stepped in last year to deny the team's trademark status, finding the name 'disparaging' to Native Americans

Since the federal government owns the land beneath the current Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, the White House signaled it would oppose any effort to use the land for a new Redskins stadium, which Snyder wants, unless the name changes.

Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell communicated that to Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser in a meeting this summer. Jewell has called the Redskins name 'a relic of the past.'

But Bush, in the Sirius XM interview, said the Redskins are 'a private enterprise,' and went on to assess Goodell's leadership over the thorny issue.

'They ought to have as much freedom to do what they want.

'But good leadership and good management would suggest - and I think Roger [Goodell] understands this - that you have to create support around whatever ideas you have, and the best way to do that is to build support.'

'It can’t be done autocratically. I think the owners understand that as well. This is a brand that is hugely powerful, hugely successful, has grown under the tenure of Roger Goodell, but it can be hurt by these incidents.'

'All these things matter, and so creating a process to show that you’re transparent and open, willing to listen to other sides of the story, I think all that’s important. It’s just part of being a leader.'