Trump: The NFL Has ‘No Leadership’!

President Donald Trump knocked National Football League officials once again for exhibiting “no leadership” after approximately two dozen players knelt in protest Sunday while the national anthem was being played before their games.

Roughly 22 players knelt to show their solidarity with former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s protest against racial injustice, according to a head count from the Associated Press. Sunday’s kneeling, which occurred just a few days after NFL owners and players met in New York City to discuss the issue, reflected the league’s subsequent decision to refrain from requiring its players to stand while the anthem is played.

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“Two dozen NFL players continue to kneel during the National Anthem, showing total disrespect to our Flag & Country. No leadership in NFL!” Trump tweeted.

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After meetings last week, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said at a press conference that he believes all players “should stand for the national anthem” to “honor our flag and our country” — although he declined to enforce the league’s policy that its players should stand. Goodell also defended the protesting kneelers, saying, “They are not doing this in any way to be disrespectful to the flag, but they also understand how it is being interpreted.”

But Trump has made his own position on the matter repeatedly clear — both in verbal remarks and in tweets — as he called upon coaches to bench their players if they refuse to stand and honor the national anthem and the flag. As a result of the continued controversy, NFL viewership has plummeted, and the number of empty stadium seats has steadily risen to near-record levels.

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Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who said two weeks ago that he would bench any of his players who choose to “disrespect the flag,” said, “There is no question the league is suffering negative effects from these protests,” ESPN reported.

Jones noted that all of the Cowboys stood during Sunday’s national anthem, although defensive tackle David Irving raised his fist following the anthem’s conclusion.

“I know that he was very deliberate during the anthem, and of course that’s the issue with me,” Jones said. “I’m very proud of the way they all handled themselves.”

“Our ability to be substantive is based on having a strong NFL, a league that people are really interested in and want to watch and want to watch the games,” Jones added. “At all times, if I am anything, I am first and foremost a proponent of making the NFL strong. Making us have as many people watching the game as we can and watching in light of what we are doing and that’s playing football. If all this makes you stronger to represent messages, let’s don’t do it in a way that tears down the strength of the NFL.”

(photo credit, homepage image: Cleveland Browns Stadium…, CC BY-SA 3.0, by Crash Underride / Donald Trump, CC BY-SA 2.0, by Gage Skidmore; photo credit, article image: Donald Trump, CC BY-SA 2.0, by CC BY-SA 2.0, by Gage Skidmore)