10 Things WWE Wants You To Forget About Rob Van Dam

3. He Had Heat For Not Going To Tribute To The Troops In 2006

When WWE started doing their annual Tribute to the Troops shows in 2003 they did so by sending superstars and divas over to Iraq and Afghanistan to pay tribute to the soldiers that were serving overseas. A lot of WWE superstars went on these trips with Vince McMahon usually going as well. Vince wanted his performers to know that if they were going to take that risk then he would too. It was a very noble thing for him to do. When RVD was asked to go to Iraq in 2006 he said no. The reports at the time noted that WWE was more upset with RVD about the way he turned down the invite then simply not going. McMahon made it very clear that he considered going to Iraq optional, but that if you don't accept an invite, you are expected to explain what a great opportunity it would be and then thank Vince for the offer and be polite about it. RVD was apparently very blunt in his reply, which didn't go over well with the boss. In several interviews over the years RVD talked about it by saying that McMahon repeatedly tried to push him to go, but he never changed his mind about it. Here's how he explained it: "I don€™t feel obligated to go somewhere that I don€™t want to go. I really don€™t enjoy flying anyway. To get on a €“ what €“ a 20 hour flight on a flying warehouse that might not even have a bathroom or seats, or whatever, to go to a desert and wrestle, which by the way, I had no passion for and was only doing out of business. To do that voluntarily in a war zone to entertain those troops? I never felt the obligation." He never received a significant push after that although he was still featured on television. When his contract expired in mid 2007 he left WWE until his surprise Royal Rumble return a couple of years later and then his part-time return in 2013.