Ted Cruz somehow has Democrats’ help in push to police college sports

It’s hard to get a broad majority in the Senate to agree on much of anything these days — except, apparently, sticking it to college athletes.

Dozens of Democrats effectively sided with President Donald Trump, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and powerful lobbyists in voting Tuesday to move forward with a bill that stands to police college sports, largely by limiting athletes’ ability to make money and collectively bargain for important changes they desire. The Senate voted 74-24 to advance the Protect College Sports Act toward a final vote.

I’ve written about the bill before — and the numerous gripes that critics have with it. Basically, the legislation is co-sponsored by Cruz and Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., who have contended that college athletics, particularly sports that don’t generate much revenue, are at risk under the current rules, known as NIL, which authorize players to make money off their names, images and likenesses.

Trump — who has openly stated his desire to return college sports to the exploitative system that was in place before NIL — is a staunch supporter of the bill.

Meanwhile, the bill has been decried by labor associations, such as the AFL-CIO; social organizations like the NAACP; and Athletes.org, a players association for college athletes.

Among the bill’s heavily criticized provisions are parts that would afford antitrust protections to the NCAA, potentially undermine athletes’ ability to collectively bargain for improved conditions and institute caps on some player compensation. The bill has been backed by various college athletic conferences, powerful broadcast companies and numerous coaches — who don’t stand to see their earnings suppressed.

And as NBC News reported, “advocates for athletes have pointed to other issues with the bill, including how it could create a loophole for schools to escape accountability for a variety of violations, including sexual abuse.”

One might think opposing this bill should be easy for any politician or party looking to comport themselves as being on the side of labor — as Democrats often do, at least rhetorically.

With that in mind, I sought comment from Cantwell’s office on her response to critics — particularly, activists for female and Black athletes who have expressed fears that the bill could enable exploitation. I was particularly interested in her response because she co-hosted a virtual conference I wrote about last fall, where she and other senators listened to former athletes and athlete representatives discuss concerns about inequality in college sports — and those concerns remain with her bill.

On Tuesday, the NAACP’s president and CEO, Derrick Johnson, rebuked the legislation, saying on ESPN that it’s all about “greed by the conferences,” some of which have raked in record revenue recently. And notably, all four Black Democrats in the Senate just voted against the bill, suggesting key divisions remain among the caucus.

Unfortunately, Cantwell’s office didn’t respond to my request for comment. And unfortunately for Democrats, silence or obfuscation on this issue is unlikely to suffice, as many in the party seem willing to throw their weight behind a bill that stands to harm those whose blood, sweat and tears fuel college sports.

And if this legislation passes, they’ll have trampled all over Democrats’ efforts to portray themselves as though they’re invested in backing workers over corporate interests.

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