President Trump reprised his “The Apprentice” catchphrase Saturday afternoon calling for athletes who “disrespect” the American flag and national anthem to be fired.
“If a player wants the privilege of making millions of dollars in the NFL, or other leagues, he or she should not be allowed to disrespect our Great American Flag (or Country) and should stand for the National Anthem,” Trump said in a pair of tweets. “If not, YOU’RE FIRED. Find something else to do!”
The tweets come one day after Trump, during a rally in Alabama in support of Sen. Luther Strange, urged NFL team owners to get rid of players who kneel during the national anthem.
“Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, ‘Get that son of a bitch off the field right now. He is fired. He’s fired,'” Trump said.
Though he didn’t mention anyone by name Friday, Trump was referring to a recent flurry of protests to the national anthem in professional sports. When quarterback Colin Kaepernick took a knee during the national anthem in Sept. 2016 in protest of wrongdoings against minorities, that action brought large amounts of criticism to the player, but also inspired a movement of players to follow suit.
Trump has faced widespread condemnation for his remarks, including from NFL players, the NFL players’ union and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.
The president also criticized another sports star on Saturday, the NBA’s Stephen Curry, and rescinded an invitation to come to the White House, after Curry said he didn’t want to go. That too has earned a broad array of backlash, including from Lebron James.
