Watch Bill Murray Crash White House Briefing Room to Talk Cubs
Bill Murray crashed the White House press room Friday to talk about his beloved Chicago Cubs minutes after press secretary Josh Earnest concluded his daily briefing Friday.
The press pool indulged Murray’s antics, referring to the actor as “Mr. President” and asking how he felt about the Cubs’ chances of advancing to the World Series this weekend; the team needs to win one of their two games at Wrigley Field to move on to face the Cleveland Indians.
“I feel very confident that [Dodgers’ Game 6 starter] Clayton Kershaw is a great, great pitcher but we got too many sticks, we got too many sticks,” Murray said of the Cubs’ hopes. “At home with our crowd, the weather… You get a little bit of autumn in Chicago, you don’t get that in Los Angeles. Trees just die in Los Angeles; in Illinois they flourish.”
The actor is in Washington, D.C. to accept the Kennedy Center’s Mark Twain Prize for American Humor on Sunday, which could present a conflict if the Cubs’ series against the Los Angeles Dodgers reaches a Game 7. As the Chicago Tribune reports, Murray once said a Cubs’ World Series victory – which would be their first since 1908 – is more important to him than an Academy Award win.
Despite being a fixture at Wrigley during the postseason, Murray opted to be in attendance to accept the prestigious comedy prize Sunday. “He’s a class act who is really looking forward to Sunday night,” a Kennedy Center spokesperson told the Tribute, adding, “As of today, (there has been) no discussion about special provisions for Cubs playoffs game watching or monitoring during Mark Twain.”
During his visit to the White House, Murray also met with President Barack Obama, a diehard fan of Chicago’s South Side squad, the White Sox. “He was wearing a Cubs jacket – which for a White Sox fan is a little troubling,” Obama told USA Today of their encounter.
Keeping with the mudslinging spirit of the presidential election, Los Angeles Dodgers fan Bryan Cranston, who has been tweeting with the hashtag #crookedcubs throughout the NLCS, highlighted Murray’s White House visit as evidence of the government rigging the playoffs.
Proof positive. Cubs surrogate @BillMurray inside the White House! The NLCS is rigged! If the #crookedcubs win the series I will not concede pic.twitter.com/W2DBwJmeFm
— Bryan Cranston (@BryanCranston) October 21, 2016