Sen. Chris Murphy Attacks Vice President Pence for Sitting for North Korea During Opening Ceremony
Democrat Sen. Chris Murphy indicated over the weekend that he doesn’t see some of the glaring differences between the United States and the brutal North Korean regime.
In a tweet posted Saturday, the Connecticut Democrat poked fun at Vice President Mike Pence for refusing to stand during the entrance of the combined Korea team at the 2018 Winter Olympics, which included communist North Korea.
Murphy compared the vice president’s action to NFL players who have chosen to kneel the playing of the U.S. national anthem.
“Why does Pence hate the opening ceremonies? Oh wait…he’s a using ceremony at a sporting event to protest something else. Where have I seen that before?” the junior senator from Connecticut tweeted Saturday morning.
While not explicitly referring to the recent protests that have rocked the NFL, Murphy’s comparison was crystal clear.
President Donald Trump sparked an ongoing feud with many football players when, speaking at a rally last year, he called on team owners to fire any player who sits or kneels during the playing of the national anthem.
But Trump’s directive only triggered numerous more protests from NFL players across the country, sparking renewed national debate on the topic.
The White House, however, refused to back down from its criticism. In October, Pence walked out of an Indianapolis Colts game when players from the opposing San Francisco 49ers protested during the national anthem by kneeling.
“I left today’s Colts game because President Trump and I will not dignify any event that disrespects our soldiers, our Flag, or our National Anthem,” the vice president said in a subsequent tweet.
“At a time when so many Americans are inspiring our nation with their courage, resolve, and resilience, now, more than ever, we should rally around our Flag and everything that unites us,” Pence said in another statement, according to The Hill.
The 2018 Winter Olympics, currently being held in Pyeongchang, South Korea, has led to new cooperation between North and South Korea.
The two countries sponsored a joint Olympics team for the first time in history, and for the first time in over a decade, North Korea has called for diplomatic talks with its South Korean neighbors.
The Trump administration has taken a hard stance against the communist regime.
In his State of the Union address late last month, Trump invited North Korean defector Ji Seong-ho, who braved starvation and traveled over 1,000 miles to escape the brutal regime.
The president also invited Otto Warmbier’s parents to the address. Warmbier was an American college student who traveled to North Korea, but was then imprisoned for bogus charges. He was released back to the U.S. more than a year later in a unconscious state. He died not long after after reaching American soil.
In a sign of protest against North Korea, Warmbier’s father accompanied Pence at the Olympics in Pyeongchang.
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