Rush Limbaugh Says Anthem Protests Are Leftist Plot To 'Damage' NFL

Ron Dicker

Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh got a chance Thursday to weigh in on the NFL’s national anthem protests during an appearance on Fox News ― and he took the ball and ran with it.

Limbaugh told host Sean Hannity the growing demonstrations are part of a liberal plot to hurt the NFL and its promotion of “masculinity” and “rugged individualism.”

“I do believe that the left wants to cause great damage to the NFL,” Limbaugh said in a clip posted by Media Matters.

What does the NFL stand for? Masculinity, strength, toughness. So, what are they doing to it? You go to college campuses now and you’ll find classes on how to take masculinity out of men. It’s actually happening. There are studies and courses in college that do this. It’s patriotic, you’ve got the flag, you’ve got the anthem, you’ve got uniformed military personnel, all the things that the left wants to erase from this country.

Since President Donald Trump called on team owners to fire players who kneel during “The Star-Spangled Banner,” protests have increased far beyond last season, when then-49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick refused to stand in order to raise awareness of police brutality and racism. Last weekend’s league-wide activism on the field has once again sparked national debate on those issues, and also prompted some backlash from fans.

Many players have stressed what the protests are really about ― that is, systemic injustice ― but Limbaugh told Hannity he knows the real culprit: lefties.

They don’t like displays of patriotism, strength, rugged individualism, and that’s why the players are being used here. They think it’s about police brutality, they think it’s about righting social wrongs, and so forth. This is an attack on the NFL as an institution for shaking it down and lowering its profile and impact on American culture. We’re in the midst of a culture war. Everybody knows it.

He added that team owners are driving their fan base away by “assuming we live in a left-wing society.” Watch the whole clip above.

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.