Republican Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler on Monday spoke out about players on the WNBA team she owns protesting her Senate campaign by wearing shirts in support of her Democratic opponent Raphael Warnock.
In an interview with the Daily Caller, Loeffler, who owns the WNBA’s Atlanta Dream, said she believes everyone has the right to protest but mentioned that people are suggesting she should lose her stake in the business and that she should also lose her seat in the Senate.
“My view continues to be that there is no place for racism in this country and as I’ve said from day one, this is something that we can address by uniting, not dividing. And I was very clear that the life of every African-American matters. The challenge that we’re dealing with here is there’s an organization, a political organization called Black Lives Matter that it’s number one goal is to defund the police. There is violence spread across our country,” Loeffler told the Daily Caller.
Looks like Sen. Loeffler’s crusade to suppress the voices of women in the @WNBA was met with resistance — and players upped the stakes with their own message for her: https://t.co/oTBh19lF9j #VoteWarnock pic.twitter.com/ColoavqovE
— Hank Johnson (@ReElectHank) August 10, 2020
“They (BLM) don’t believe in the nuclear family and they’ve promoted anti-Semitic actions and comments. And so I think there’s an opportunity to use force to bring us together, not divide us. And it’s certainly everyone’s right to express their views, to vote for whom they wish, but for expressing my views,” Loeffler continued. (RELATED: Senate Ethics Committee Dismisses Insider Trading Complaint Against Kelly Loeffler)
Loeffler said Black Lives Matter’s message is divisive and that they have threatened her business and job.
“It’s been suggested that I should lose my business, that I should lose my seat in the Senate. And that is completely counter to the freedom of expression in this country and the right to do that. But also how this conversation needs to be had by a range of voices so that we can move our country forward,” Loeffler added. (RELATED: ‘Black Lives Matter’: WNBA Players Support Democrat Running Against Kelly Loeffler)
The Georgia Senator did not have much hope for gaining back the trust of the women on her team, saying it is Black Lives Matter’s goal to get President Donald Trump out of the White House.
“I think that this has been completely politicized. And my point is that the platform that sports has built within our country is one that should be big enough for conservative voices and that we’re going in a dangerous direction when multiple points of view are not considered. I think it’s very clear that this is being politicized,” Loeffler said in regard to possibly meeting with players to have a conversation about their differences.
“Part of this movement, the BLM political movement, one of their key objectives is to get President Trump out of the White House. So I don’t think there’s interest in talking as much as using a political platform to advance an agenda that has nothing to do with the name of the organization. And it’s frustrating to see this moment create more division across the country, the riots, the looting, the attacks you see in Portland, now 80 nights in a row. This isn’t a way to create unity in our country,” Loeffler continued.
Loeffler is in a tight race against Republican Georgia Rep. Doug Collins, as the two fight in a special election. Republican Georgia Sen. Johnny Isakson announced in August 2019 that he would resign from the Senate, citing health reasons, setting up Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp to choose Loeffler as his replacement.
The election will be held on November 3.
