Fran Tarkenton on Why Athletes Who Boycott Trump White House Are ’Stupid’ (Video)

NFL Hall of Fame legend Fran Tarkenton has a message for athletes that say they will not visit a Trump White House. In a video captured by TMZ, Tarkenton says its “stupid” and “disrespectful.” He also stated, “Nobody boycotted Obama ’cause he’s black, did they?” Who said anything about not attending because Trump is white?

Tarkenton is a Trump supporter and a businessman, and frankly his politics are not a concern. As I have mentioned before, the election is over and we are where we are. A nation gets the government it deserves.

What is interesting are the inaccuracies and choice of words Tarkenton uses in this interview. In the video, when asked about championship athletes saying they wont visit the White House, Tarkenton replies those are the basketball guys, football guys don’t go to the White House. That is factually inaccurate. Every championship team from the four major sports is invited to the White House. Tarkenton makes an association based on a number of different factors. Mainly, the heavy media coverage NBA team and players get when interacting with President Obama and his White House. The association being the NBA is black, the President is black so they support him.
Tarkenton also uses the term boycott to refer to players refusing to visit the White House. That word has specific meaning and nuance and is embedded in this country’s Civil Rights Movement. When Tom Brady refused to attend the Obama White House in 2015 was that a boycott? Was his decision not to attend also disrespectful? Brady claimed he had family commitments but was seen stretching at Gillette Stadium and at an Apple store in NYC that same day. By the way Brady happened to attend the White House every time the Pats won the Super Bowl when George W. Bush was President…
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If it’s good for one, it has to be good for all. If players don’t want to attend the White House and meet the President, for any reason, that is their prerogative. If it’s an issue of respecting the Office of the President then the visit should be mandatory for all barring extreme family emergency. But, that’s not how things are. Different strokes for different folks.