Fox News "The Ingraham Angle" - Transcript Interview with Steve Scalise and Jim Jordan

Interview

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Senator Loeffler joins me now. Senator, what's your response to all this? I thought it was about winning games. Now it's about winning Senate seats?

SEN. KELLY LOEFFLER, R-GA., ATLANTA DREAM CO-OWNER: Well, Laura, thanks for having me on. It really proves my point -- this isn't about playing basketball. It's about playing politics. And it truly is about politics. Look, everyone has a right to choose who they want to vote for, but because I stood up for our American flag, suggested that we replace that with the divisive idea of this political organization, Black Lives Matter. Not the statement, we all agree with the statement, but this political organization that wants to defund the police, it promotes anti-Semitism and violence, it doesn't believe in the nuclear family. We are talking moms and dads. I said how can the league support that? Let's stand for the flag. And in fact, the players have walked out during the National Anthem. So I had to draw the line and I had to speak out.

INGRAHAM: Senator, here is who reportedly orchestrated this whole new campaign against you. "The New York Times" is reporting that one of your own players, Elizabeth Williams, "said the idea to publicly endorse Warnock came from Sue Bird. Both Williams and Bird are executives in the players' union. Top players also consulted with Stacey Abrams," what? "Abrams Joined the players' union board of advocates last summer." So now Stacey Abrams, she has nothing else to do, she's involved? This is just so petty, and I don't see how this brings more people into watching the WNBA. I think this turns people off. People want people to be treated equally and well, and want people to have full, wonderful lives, but this is just mind-numbingly absurd at this point.

LOEFFLER: Well, you're right, because Stacey Abrams has endorsed my opponent, so it's blatantly clear that this is all about politics and not about the unity that sports can provide. I grew up playing sports. I think we all know the power sports has to bring people together from all walks of life and to support people of different backgrounds and the tolerance that you get by being part of sports. And that's been totally eradicated here in this moment where because I have a conservative voice they want me out, they want to cancel me.

INGRAHAM: Silenced.

LOEFFLER: And they're basically saying our sport is not big enough or conservative. So I will always stand up for the conservative voice, and for all Americans who don't feel they have a voice right now.

INGRAHAM: Elizabeth Williams, who I just mentioned, one of your players, on why they wore the t-shirts. This is what she said.

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ELIZABETH WILLIAMS, ATLANTA DREAM PLAYER: We wanted to come in and where "Vote Warnock" shirts, he's currently running for U.S. Senate right now, and he supports everything that all the players in the WNBA support. So we wanted to make a statement and be really vocal about that.

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INGRAHAM: All the players in the WNBA, there's not one player? Everyone has to have the same orthodoxy? It's all -- everything is uniform, no dissent ever, apparently.

LOEFFLER: We've gone from a league of being one of tolerance and unity and diversity to being intolerant. And I think that's a cautionary tale. This is the direction, this is emblematic of what's happening across the country. This isn't about me. I'm standing up because I have a platform for Americans that feel like they can't have a voice. I'm speaking out. I worry about the student, the business owner, the employee who feels like they are silenced because of this. So I will not stop speaking out.

INGRAHAM: And maybe intimidation of players who disagree with this but who are afraid. Maybe there are not that many, but I bet there are a few. Senator, thanks so much.

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