Trump says he wants the NFL to play unless players kneel

President TrumpDonald John TrumpTeachers Union launches 0K ad purchase and calls for education funding in relief FDA pledges ‘we will not cut corners’ on coronavirus vaccine Let’s protect our values ​​COVID-19 liability MAY said in a recent interview that he wants the NFL to play games soon, but not if players decide to participate in knee-jerk protests against racial injustice during the national anthem.

‘They want to open up and they want to open up badly and they have cooperated with the government. I would say this: If they do not stand for the national anthem, I hope they do not open. “Otherwise, I would like to see them open and we will do everything we can to get them open,” Trump said in a radio interview on “Outkick The Coverage” with Clay Travis on Tuesday. They can protest in other ways, they would not flag our flag if our country does not. ”

“If they do not stand in front of the flag and stand strong, I would be very happy if they did not open. That said, I would like to see them open, “Trump said again.

Trump refers to the knee-jerk protests against racial inequality that began with former San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick in the 2016 season. Kaepernick, who was the first NFL player to kneel during the national anthem to protest the treatment of people of color in the US, was often targeted by Trump and other conservatives for his demonstrations, which they found unpatriotic. neamd.

Debate over the form of protest has re-emerged in recent months amid widespread demonstrations against racism and police brutality fueled by the murder of police officer George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who died in late May after a white police officer on his neck knelt at an arrest for more than eight minutes.

Trump’s remarks come months after NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell encouraged peaceful protests against police brutality, saying the league was “wrong for not listening to players in the past. The apology came amid backlash against the league over their past treatment of the knee-jerk protests and renewed light on their 2018 policy, which was later stopped, requiring players to stand up for the national anthem when they were on the field.

Trump’s remarks also come weeks after he described himself as “an ally of all peaceful Protestants” in an address from the Rose Garden, while encouraging anti-looting and insurgency seen in parts of the nation days after Floyd’s death.

In his interview on Tuesday, Trump also slammed the recent wave of knee-jerk protests during the national anthem that NBA teams attended when the season returned, saying he thinks the move “has been terrible for basketball.”

“People are angry about it,” Trump claimed. ‘They do not realize it, they do not want to – they have enough politics with guys like me. They no longer need to drive downhill, go up for the shot. “