State Senator Mike Regan (R-31) announced today that he will introduce a Senate resolution officially condemning the anti-American demonstrations that occurred this weekend across the National Football League.
“Across the league, scores of players, enabled and encouraged by team owners, general managers and coaches, refused to stand for the national anthem,” Regan said. “What we witnessed throughout the NFL this weekend was not an innocuous political demonstration. It was not a harmless exercise of First Amendment rights. It was a deliberate, orchestrated effort to disrespect the anthem and flag of the United States of America, and it cannot go unrebuked.”
He praised former Army Ranger and current Pittsburgh Steelers lineman Alejandro Villanueva, who disobeyed team orders when he emerged from the locker room for a pregame rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner, a move that caused a sharp and immediate rise in his football jersey sales.
“We as a nation have to stand up against the poisonous identity politics that have politicized nearly every facet of American life, including our sacred national symbols,” Regan said. “Political dissent has manifested itself in acts of radical protest. Things have simply gone too far. Through the passage of this Senate Resolution, I hope we can make an important point that we as a state and nation should honor our great country and support and respect all that it stands for.”
CONTACT: Noah Karn (717)-787-8524