NBA Coach Steve Kerr Says Trump Is No Patriot and Poses a Threat to US 'Core Values'
29 December 2017
Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr told USA Today that he believes our country’s “institutions and core values” are under “assault” by President Donald Trump and that he has an obligation to speak out.
“The 52-year-old former player has been loud in his opposition to President Trump, one reason the team won’t make a customary visit to the White House to be recognized for its 2017 NBA championship. The logical time would be late February, when they play the Washington Wizards. After criticism from Kerr and players, Trump in late September preemptively uninvited them,” wrote USA Today‘s Sam Amick.
Kerr pointed to an op-ed essay by former acting U.S. Attorney Gen. Sally Yates in which she warned that the nation is at a crossroads where “partisan gamesmanship” threatens to wipe out what the country stands for.
“I read it this morning, and I tweeted it. It’s fantastic. But there’s absolutely an assault on our institutions and on our core values as a country. She tweeted the preamble to the Constitution, which really sums up our country. And all those things are kind of under attack right now,” said Kerr.
He continued, “One of the things she writes is how important it is to speak the truth, and for people to not be deceived, coerced. That’s the entire reasoning behind the structure of our government, you know? Checks and balances. But it goes beyond the checks and balances. It’s up to the citizens to, ‘We The People,’ right? It’s not ‘We the President and Congress.’ It’s ’We The People, in order to form a more perfect union …’ So, who’s The People? You and I are the People. … We all are. Steph (Curry) and Draymond (Green) and KD (Kevin Durant).”
“So it’s important for all of us to call bullsh*t, and there’s a lot of bullsh*t right now, and propaganda, and misinformation. You can’t let that happen. The truth has to always win out, and our institutions and ideals have to win out, so it’s important that we speak out,” He concluded.
Kerr grew up in Lebanon, where his father — president of the American University in Beirut — was assassinated. Kerr was 18 at the time, a freshman basketball player at the University of Arizona.
He went on to have a 25-year career in the NBA before going on to become a coach.
He toldUSA Today that he’s not at all interested in pursuing a career in politics.
“I can’t imagine getting into politics. It sounds horrible. It sounds awful. What would you rather do, coach basketball or be in the government?” he said. “I’m not interested or qualified for something like that. But again, I think if you have a voice, you’ve got to use it.”