He seems to parrot the establishment narrative whenever it's required. He's unrealistically supportive of MLS regardless of it's quality. He's from the first generation of US football players that burst onto the scene in the early 90's when the U.S. fans first started paying attention. He branded himself as a "rebel" back in the day, so they think that will attract fans from the margins, which is where the USSF thinks they have to find them. He's not going to ever question the USSF publicly or bite the hand that feeds him. He's exactly the guy the USSF, MLS, and the media want there.