Commentator Jeffrey Lord decried the "politicization of football," saying NFL players who protested President Donald Trump's criticism of athletes who refuse to stand for the National Anthem should put themselves "on the line."
In a Monday interview with "America Talks Live" host Miranda Khan on Newsmax TV, the American Spectator columnist and former CNN political commentator urged protesters to do something positive to end social injustice.
"Stop the violence which is devastating to the black community," Lord said. "Do something about it. Don't write a poem. Get off your knees, get off your butt, go to Chicago and help."
"If you're really dedicated to this, then put yourself on the line," he added.
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Lord said the take-the-knee protest "wouldn't exist if all this politicization of football, not to mention everything else in life" had not been going on.
And Trump, he said, "basically responded to it and I think it's safe to say that he responded with what is a common sense popular point of view. Nobody's begrudging these people free speech but they have a job to do . . ."
"The American people turn on the games whether it's football, baseball, basketball, whatever to watch the game," Lord added. "They're not there to watch, to get a political lecture about cause A, B, C, or D . . ."
"[O]ne of the reasons why they watch is to get away from it all, and I think this is just a very big mistake on the part of the NFL and the players," he added.
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