Trump critic Steve Kerr reflects on recent mail bombs: 'Concerned for myself? A little bit'
NEW YORK — Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr has long been a critic of President Donald Trump, not only for his policies but for his rhetoric.
Luckily, though, Kerr wasn’t among the targets of mail bombs that were sent to prominent critics of the president in the last two days. A Florida man suspected of sending the suspicious packages was arrested Friday morning by the FBI and charged with five federal felonies. Former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and former attorney general Eric Holder were among those who had suspicious packages sent to their homes.
The common theme was the willingness to criticize Trump, which brought Kerr into the discussion Friday before the Warriors faced the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Kerr, along with San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, hasn’t been shy about stepping into the political waters and voicing his opinions since Trump’s rise.
“Concerned for myself? A little bit,” Kerr said two hours before the Warriors-Knicks game. “I think we should all be concerned. No matter who you are, you need to be concerned. Not just with the bombs but just the issue in the country we live in, innocent people getting killed, innocent people getting shot. It’s a dangerous time to be alive.”
In May, Kerr called the NFL acquiescing to Trump’s national anthem criticism “idiotic,” and in June he discussed patriotism and the trend of championship athletes and teams skipping White House visits.
Kerr’s somber reply was reflective of his own personal history. His father, Malcolm Kerr, president of the American University of Beirut, was assassinated outside of his office in Lebanon in 1984, when Steve Kerr was 18 years old. Kerr said he hasn’t received any suspicious mail, and it’s likely NBA security has beefed up its precautionary measures in the meantime.
“It’s really sad,” Kerr said. “It speaks to where things are in our political atmosphere, but, no, I have not [received any suspicious mail].”
When asked if he should take any extra measures, Kerr turned on his humor to lighten the mood.
“Umm … maybe I should,” he said.
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