*Donald Trump praised the new NFL policy that bans kneeling during the national anthem. He also says “maybe you shouldn’t be in the country” if you don’t stand for the anthem.
The policy forbids players from sitting or taking a knee on the field during the anthem but allows them to stay in the locker room. Any violations would result in fines against teams.
Trump spoke about the policy to “Fox & Friends” in an interview that aired Thursday.
“I think that’s good,” Trump said in the interview that taped Wednesday. “I don’t think people should be staying in the locker rooms, but still I think it’s good. You have to stand proudly for the national anthem. Or you shouldn’t be playing, you shouldn’t be there. Maybe you shouldn’t be in the country.”
Hear Trump weigh in on the matter via the clip above.
Rapper Common has added his voice to the chorus of criticism over the ban. He says the new policy is robbing players of their freedom of speech.
“I just think … telling people what they should do during a ceremony is not really what the country is based on,” Common tells TMZ while out in Beverly Hills.
“Freedom of speech, freedom to be who you are … This country is supposed to be about us being independent and being able to be who we are. Especially in a ceremony where people aren’t trying to disrespect anything.”
Hear what else he had to say in the clip above about how the ban is ultimately a necessary business move.
As you recall, Trump hijacked Colin Kaepernick’s original intent with anthem-kneeling and turned it into a trigger topic about the military.
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Meanwhile, many have taken to social media to debate about why NFL owners are so concerned with appeasing Trump.
One NFL team source told Bleacher Report’s Mike Freeman “Our league is f–king terrified of Trump. We’re scared of him.”
Rolling Stone’s Jamil Smith writes: “This is how far the NFL has gone to make sure that fans don’t receive overt reminders of white supremacy as they try to enjoy the game.”
The NFL Players Association’s statement ripped Roger Goodell and New York Giants owner John Mara.
“What NFL owners did today was thwart the players’ constitutional rights to express themselves and use our platform to draw attention to social injustices like racial inequality in our country,” wrote Malcolm Jenkins, the free safety for the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, in a statement. “Everyone loses when voices get stifled.”
His teammate, Chris Long, wrote on Twitter that the new rules represented “a fear of a diminished bottom line” and “also fear of a president turning his base against a corporation.”
Do you agree or disagree that NFL owners fear Donald Trump?
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