Former top Harris adviser ignites backlash over 'political props' comment targeting USA men's hockey team
Symone Sanders, who formerly served as a top adviser to then-Vice President Kamala Harris and the 2020 Biden campaign, complained during President Donald Trump's State of the Union address Tuesday...
By Fox News · Fox News
Symone Sanders, who formerly served as a top adviser to then-Vice President Kamala Harris and the 2020 Biden campaign, complained during President Donald Trump's State of the Union address Tuesday night that the Olympic Gold-winning U.S. men's hockey team "allowed themselves to be used as political props." "They should not be used as political props though, and frankly, allowed themselves to be used as political props," Sanders, who is currently co-hosting a weeknight show on MS NOW, said after the president introduced the team during his address. He later gave the nation's highest civilian honor to the team's goalie. "I think that is going to be the question and the discussion going forward," she continued. "It is very clear why the president did this. What is unclear, to me, is why the men's hockey team allowed themselves to be utilized in this particular fashion." US WOMEN'S HOCKEY GOLD MEDALIST HILARY KNIGHT BRUSHES OFF MEN'S REACTION TO TRUMP REMARK Sanders went on to claim that "no one is against USA and our Olympic athletes." Critics on X slammed the MS NOW host as a "political prop" herself in response to her criticism. Others pointed out that the hockey team's appearance was one of the only times Democrats stood throughout Trump's speech. "Miserable people. Just miserable," a prominent conservative video producer wrote on X. "Shut the puck up!" conservative media personality Bo Snerdley posted on X. "Because Democrats never use people as political props," Tim Graham, the NewsBusters executive editor, sarcastically wrote on X. TEAM USA GOALIE JAKE OETTINGER REACTS TO TRUMP'S LOCKER ROOM COMMENTS ABOUT THE WOMEN'S HOCKEY TEAM Polling data showed that the president's introduction of the gold medal-winning USA men’s Olympic hockey team during the State of the Union address on Tuesday night was met with largely positive bipartisan reactions among voters. Lee Carter, of the polling group Maslansky & Partners, said independent voters especially loved the mome…