BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - The Latest on Gov. John Bel Edwards’ response to Saints players’ refusal to stand during the national anthem (all times local):
2:40 p.m.
Gov. John Bel Edwards says he’s talked to New Orleans Saints officials about several players’ refusal to stand during the national anthem.
Louisiana’s governor said Wednesday that he hasn’t talked to team owner Tom Benson, but that he’s had conversations with “individuals in the Saints organization” about the protest in Sunday’s game against the Carolina Panthers.
Edwards wouldn’t provide specifics about what was discussed in those talks, but said the conversations were an “effort to make sure we get this resolved.”
The governor said he believes players have more constructive ways to express their concerns than kneeling or sitting during the national anthem.
He pointed to the Dallas Cowboys game on Monday night. The team’s players knelt arm-in-arm before the anthem, then rose for the playing of the anthem.
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11 a.m.
Gov. John Bel Edwards says there are “more effective ways” to protest than to refuse to stand during the national anthem. But Louisiana’s governor dismissed suggestions the New Orleans Saints should lose its state subsidies because several of its players wouldn’t stand.
Edwards, a former Army Ranger, acknowledged that people have a right to protest, but he encouraged people to be on their feet for the anthem.
Ten Saints players wouldn’t stand for the national anthem during Sunday’s game.
Two Louisiana lawmakers are pushing to reconsider state subsidies to the NFL team because of the controversy. But Edwards says Louisiana “must continue to meet its contractual obligations with the Saints.”
The governor spoke on a New Orleans area radio show Wednesday, and his office provided a transcript of his comments.
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