MLB Wants Donation Back from GOP Candidate After Controversy Erupts
Major League Baseball has requested a $5,000 refund from Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi after the GOP candidate came under fire for a litany of reasons.
Hyde-Smith, who is running in a Mississippi runoff on Tuesday for her U.S. Senate seat, has come under increasing scrutiny after controversial comments she made.
She has joked about suppressing liberal voters and about front-row attendance at a hanging.
“If he invited me to a public hanging, I’d be on the front row”- Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith says in Tupelo, MS after Colin Hutchinson, cattle rancher, praises her.
Hyde-Smith is in a runoff on Nov 27th against Mike Espy. pic.twitter.com/0a9jOEjokr
— Lamar White, Jr. (@LamarWhiteJr) November 11, 2018
“If he invited me to a public hanging, I’d be on the front row,” Hyde-Smith joked in the now-viral video.
She has also fallen under scrutiny for attending a segregated private high school in the 1970s, a narrative which has been slammed by Hyde-Smith’s camp.
“In their latest attempt to help Mike Espy, the gotcha liberal media has taken leave of their senses. They have stooped to a new low, attacking her entire family and trying to destroy her personally instead of focusing on the clear differences on the issues between Cindy Hyde-Smith and her far-left opponent,” Hyde-Smith spokeswoman Melissa Scallan said in a statement regarding the candidate’s Democratic opponent.
Despite some of the backlash, President Donald Trump has thrown his support behind Hyde-Smith.
I will be in Gulfport and Tupelo, Mississippi, on Monday night doing two Rallies for Senator Hyde-Smith, who has a very important Election on Tuesday. She is an outstanding person who is strong on the Border, Crime, Military, our great Vets, Healthcare & the 2nd A. Needed in D.C.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 25, 2018
For its part, MLB no longer seems interested in supporting Hyde-Smith in any way, shape or form.
MLB responds today: The contribution was made in connection with an event that MLB lobbyists were asked to attend. MLB has requested that the contribution be returned. https://t.co/A7xyNgneAv
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 25, 2018
As USA Today notes, shopping conglomerate Walmart promptly demanded a donation refund following Hyde-Smith’s joke about attending a hanging.
But one thing worth noting, according to USA Today, is that MLB’s original donation came nearly three weeks after the controversial comments were made.
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has generally been able to avoid the political pitfalls his peers in the NFL and NBA have had to deal with.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has had to deal with anthem protests among many teams and players, while Manfred has had just one player ever kneel for the anthem. NBA commissioner had had to deal with outspoken players and controversies surrounding White House visits, neither of which Manfred has had to deal with on a large scale.
And to be fair, $5,000 is an utter pittance as far as political donations go.
But as public outcries have only grown in intensity and fervor, MLB seems to be making its own political statement regarding this particular GOP candidate.
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