Nation

Trump Says Michigan Dem Rep. Facing Censure For Thanking Him Should Join GOP

Published

2 years ago

April 24, 2020

President Donald Trump told Michigan State Representative Kate Whitsett, D, whose fellow Democratic state lawmakers are moving to censure her for thanking the President for touting hydroxychloroquine, a drug she hails for her recovery from COVID-19, that she “should join the Republican Party”, in a Tweet posted Thursday night.

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1253538626992046080?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fpolitics%2Fmichigan-democrat-facing-censure-for-thank-you-to-trump-should-join-gop-president-says

“Disgraceful. Should join the Republican Party,” President Trump wrote.

Earlier on Thursday, Whitsett shared her thoughts on her colleagues’ move in an exclusive video for Fox News’ “Ingraham Angle.”

She said, “Today I got the news that I will be censured by the 13th Congressional district just for simply thanking the President of the United States for taking care of me and ensuring that I had the quality health care that I needed with hydroxychloroquine. A simple thank you has gotten me censured. Can you believe that?”

Whitsett added, “I thought I had first amendment rights, but I guess I don’t. The Democratic party is showing me that I don’t”

Michigan’s 13th Congressional District Democratic Party Organization plans to hold their vote on Saturday using Zoom videoconferencing, The Detroit News reported.

“At the end of the day, we have political systems,” said Jonathan Kinloch, chairman of the organization. “We have political parties, and political parties exist for a reason.

If passed, censuring Whitsett would mean she will not receive the group’s endorsement in the next election and she will be barred from participating in the group for the next two election cycles, according to the news site.

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Nation

Boston Celtics Player Legally Changing Name to ‘Enes Kanter Freedom’ to Celebrate U.S. Citizenship

Published

1 day ago

November 29, 2021

Staff Writer

Photo by Omar Rawlings/Getty Images

Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter is celebrating becoming a U.S. citizen in an incredible way. The 29-year-old athlete from Turkey is having his citizenship oath ceremony Monday, and will legally change his name to Enes Kanter Freedom.

Kanter is an outspoken human rights advocate who had his Turkish passport revoked in 2017 after he criticized Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Mediaite reports “he has also criticized NBA stars Michael Jordan and LeBron James for not doing enough to help the Black community and not speaking out against exploitative labor practices in China respectively.”

Celtics head coach Ime Udoka told the Boston Globe the team is “all for” the player’s name change. Kanter’s manager says the player will complete his legal name change to have Kanter become his middle name and Freedom be his new last name at Monday’s ceremony.

“We congratulated him as a group for getting his American citizenship last week,” Udoka said. “That’s who Enes is, we’re proud of him. Enes is who he is. He’s passionate about his stances and the name change; you look at [Ron] Artest [who changed his name to Metta Sandiford-Artest in the middle of the COVID-19 outbreak] and guys that have done it in the past. It’s something he wants to express and we’re all for it.”

Kanter has already changed his official Twitter account to Enes Kanter FREEDOM with his new last name in all caps. Freedom made waves when he tweeted the following on November 18: Money over Morals for the ‘King’. Sad & disgusting how these athletes pretend they care about social justice. They really do ‘shut up & dribble’ when Big Boss [inserted Chinese flag] says so. Did you educate yourself about the slave labor that made your shoes or is that not part of your research?”

The tweet included photos of basketball shoes he wore painted with human rights depictions and phrases such as “hey still researching and getting educated?” as well as “I am informed and educated on the situation.”

The statement is with regard to his criticism of LeBron James’ partnership with Nike. “Nike remains one of the NBA’s biggest sponsors as both organizations feed off their partnerships with China” reports Mediaite. Kanter Freedom also made an offer to take Michael Jordan and Nike co-founder Phil Knight to China in order for the men to “visit these slave labor camps and you can see it with your own eyes.”