Commentary: Conservatives want an ‘All American’ alternative to Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl show. Can you say Hispanophobia?

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Do you remember how seriously people used to argue about Super Bowl snacks? It was always Cheetos or Doritos, hot wings or garlic knots… and someone *always* brought carrot sticks, much to everyone’s dismay!

Turning Point USA, a conservative organization created by the late Charlie Kirk, recently asked its members to weigh in on who should perform at the Super Bowl LXI halftime show.

The NFL recently revealed that Bad Bunny would be performing at their halftime show, but Turning Point USA is responding with a protest event. They’re calling it “The All American Halftime Show,” and it will feature performances entirely in English.

I couldn’t believe the backlash when the NFL announced Bad Bunny would be performing at the Super Bowl! It’s crazy to me that some people are actually complaining, saying it’s somehow un-American. Like, it’s just a concert, and he’s a hugely popular artist! I don’t get why some folks are so upset about Benito performing – it should be fun!

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Commentary: Bad Bunny will perform Super Bowl LX’s halftime show, likely in Spanish. Cue the MAGA meltdown

Bad Bunny, one of the biggest music stars from Puerto Rico, is set to perform during the halftime show of Super Bowl LX. He’s famous for singing mostly in Spanish and often wearing dresses, which is likely to spark criticism from some conservative circles.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said booking Bad Bunny was “a terrible decision.”

After learning that Bad Bunny would perform at the Super Bowl in late September, President Trump called the NFL’s decision “absolutely ridiculous,” admitting he hadn’t previously known who Bad Bunny was.

Corey Lewandowski, an advisor to the White House, criticized the selection of someone he believes is deeply critical of the United States, calling it a “shameful” decision.

While many artists and celebrities have been very vocal about their criticism of the president and his policies, Bad Bunny generally isn’t known for being particularly political. However, he has voiced worries about U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) potentially detaining fans at his shows. Last month, he explained that he decided not to schedule any U.S. concerts on his tour because he was concerned about ICE showing up and detaining people. He told i-D magazine that the possibility of ICE being present at his concerts was a serious concern during tour planning.

That single act was enough for some to label Bad Bunny as an opponent of the MAGA movement and portray his Super Bowl performance as evidence of a wider, unwelcome influx of Latino influence.

It’s clear that some politicians and commentators are exploiting anti-Hispanic sentiment to gain votes, power, and money. Bad Bunny represents a community that has been unfairly targeted by the current administration through questionable practices in American cities, regardless of immigration status. Like many U.S. citizens with clean records, people have been detained and even deported. By attacking Bad Bunny and those who share his background, some have gained political support while distracting from important issues like the weak economy and rising cost of living under Trump.

Voices

Commentary: Sydney Sweeney’s jeans pun is not a ‘Nazi dog whistle,’ but that DHS campaign? It might be

A recent American Eagle Outfitters ad campaign featuring 27-year-old actress Sydney Sweeney has caused controversy online, all because of a simple, and some say uncreative, play on words.

Turning Point is planning a show called “Celebrating Faith, Family, & Freedom” to run at the same time as the Super Bowl halftime show, and they’re asking their followers what kind of music they want to hear. The first choice offered was simply, “Anything in English.”

The survey appears directly below a donation button, and includes an option to opt-in to receive automated promotional and fundraising texts from Turning Point.

Even though the 79-year-old president wasn’t familiar with him, Bad Bunny is a hugely popular artist with three Grammy Awards. He’s become a global star and has actually surpassed Taylor Swift in U.S. Billboard chart success.

The MAGA movement is trying to find an act to compete with Bad Bunny’s popular Super Bowl weekend performance. House Speaker Johnson proposed singer Lee Greenwood, hoping to draw a larger crowd. However, as Variety noted, Greenwood has a relatively small following on Spotify – under 500,000 listeners – while Bad Bunny has a massive 80 million.

Turning Point USA is addressing this issue and promises more information soon. Their website states, “Performers and event details coming soon.”

As a huge cinema and pop culture fan, I was really impressed with Bad Bunny’s recent SNL appearance. It was awesome seeing him address all the fuss about him performing at the Super Bowl, and he did it entirely in Spanish! He genuinely thanked his supporters for recognizing the impact Latinos have had in this country. But the best part? He finished his monologue by switching to English and playfully telling anyone who didn’t understand him they had four months to learn – I thought it was a brilliant way to make a point and totally loved it!

It’s unclear if conservatives will soon start a campaign to express mock outrage over chips, salsa, and guacamole, similar to previous fundraising efforts. Perhaps they’ll focus on ‘Making Pretzels Great Again.’

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2025-10-11 01:31