Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey has the support of some lawmakers in D.C., even as the Rockets and NBA have apologized for his comments supporting pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong.
Morey over the weekend tweeted and quickly deleted an image including the words “fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong.” His comments were quickly rebuked by Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta and an NBA spokesman who noted they “deeply offended many of our friends and fans in China, which is regrettable.”
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz slammed the NBA, saying in a tweet “human rights shouldn’t be for sale & the NBA shouldn’t be assisting Chinese communist censorship.”
Cruz said he was proud to see Morey “call out the Chinese Communist Party’s repressive treatment of protestors in Hong Kong.”
“Now, in pursuit of big $$, the @nba is shamefully retreating,” Cruz tweeted.
[…]
Cruz is a well-known Rockets fan. But he wasn’t the only Texas politician voicing support for Morey. Democratic presidential hopefuls Julián Castro and Beto O’Rourke also took to Twitter to back Morey.
“China is using its economic power to silence critics — even those in the U.S.” Castro tweeted.
“The only thing the NBA should be apologizing for is their blatant prioritization of profits over human rights,” O’Rourke tweeted. “What an embarrassment.”
Deadspin has been all over this, so start there and google around as needed. This is exactly the kind of craven behavior I usually expect from the NFL. For shame.
It’s funny how no one ever spoke out about China until President Trump put the issue front and center. Decades of our politicians just rolled over for communist China, and now they’re working on ‘belt and road’ trying to take over the world, and using the United States consumer to finance their conquest.
Once again, the Chinese people get to see the CCP ride herd on their privileges (not rights, they don’t have rights)
. Sorry! No basketball for you! Emperor has spoken. Wouldn’t it be funny if the CCP taking away bread and circuses results in a Yellow Spring in China?
I think Bill’s right – no one before Trump placed China and the American electorate in the same sentence before the stable genius did….roughly a week ago when he urged them to investigate his political rival. I guess that’s one way to get your name in the news, O Wise One !
C.L.:
Please list any effort by either Bush, by Clinton, or by Obama to reign in the Chinese, stop the offshoring of our manufacturing to China, stop their theft of intellectual property, etc.
posted from my Matepro x laptop, which is totally not a ripoff of Apple’s product
Please list any effort by trump to do any of things, either.
Trade negotiations. Tariffs and threats of tariffs. Sanctions on North Korea combined with negotiations. More partnering with our allies in the region, Japan, S. Korea, the Phillipines, etc.
https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2018/09/30/us-philippines-increase-number-of-joint-military-activities/
More importantly, actually NAMING the problem…..unfair trade practices, admission of China to the WTO as a mistake, allowing China to claim developing nation status, China stealing intellectual property and forced technology transfers.
It’s like Muslim terrorism, all over again. Previous administrations were seemingly unable to name the problem, to say it, out in the open, much less do something about it. You may not like his approach, but Trump is DOING something about it. This is new and novel for an American president.
Trump is a Russian asset.