Tuesday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” former CBS “Evening News” anchor Dan Rather said NFL players kneeling for the national anthem was “as American as apple pie.”
Rather said, “That’s one of the things I wanted to discuss in what unites us. What is patriotism in the second decade of the 21st century? As far as the anthem is concerned. I stand for the national anthem. I put my hand to the heart without apology. It usually leaves me without word. That’s what is inside me. That’s what I feel. However, dissent is as American as a revolutionary war, or as cliché goes, it’s as American as apple pie. I think it’s very important we listen to one another when it’s peaceful dissent. And while it’s not my way of kneeling, some stand, some kneel, but it’s having respect for those who kneel. But even though you say yourself as I say to myself, ‘It’s not what I would do, I want to listen to what they have to say.’ Because as I understand what they’re saying, it’s not disrespect for the country. It’s not disrespect certainly for the military. It’s about calling attention to injustice and we’re not a perfect union.”
He added, “The Constitution says ‘in order to create a more perfect union.’ It’s always the North Star is out there. We want a ‘a perfect union.’ Realize we can’t be perfect, but we can keep improving. Important to listen to one another and lower voices. We need an injection of stability with one another. Respect for the other person’s point of view. Doesn’t mean we don’t stand up for our principles.”
(h/t Grabien)
Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN
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