The LSU women's basketball team was not on the court during the National Anthem and Gov. Jeff Landry took them to task for it.
But Landry is the one who should be taken to task for not supporting Louisiana's flagship team, WWL's Newell Normand said. "Stupid is as stupid does," he said, blasting Landry.
"If anyone in the state of Louisiana should have the benefit of the doubt and maybe some consideration given to it it would be the flagship university," Newell said, adding, "This is your brand, this is your product. How about a simple phone call to gather what actually happened? This is a novel thought. Find out what occurred."
Gov. Jeff Landry criticized Coach Kim Mulkey and the LSU women’s basketball team Tuesday morning for not being on the court for the national anthem ahead of an Elite Eight matchup with Iowa.
Landry called for Louisiana lawmakers to put a policy in place that would require college athletes to be present for the national anthem. He suggested their absence could be punishable by the loss of athletic scholarships.
“My mother coached women’s high school basketball during the height of desegregation, no one has a greater respect for the sport and for Coach Mulkey,” Landry’s statement said. “However, above respect for that game is a deeper respect for those that serve to protect us and unite us under one flag!”
If you want to effect change, have a discussion with the chancellor or someone else at the school, Normand suggested. Destroying the brand of your flagship university and then threatening to take away scholarships is not the proper way to handle it, he said.
"This is a breakdown in emotional intelligence," he said. "These young ladies worked hard. It was an emotional game. They lost. And one of the questions in all of the crap about this and the governor just adds on to it. This is dangerous."