DeSantis to punish Tampa Bay Rays because of their statement against gun violence

[Nevilledog]

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Ron Filipkowski 🇺🇦
@RonFilipkowski
·
Jun 2, 2022
Desantis will veto the bill to fund the Tampa Rays new Spring Training facility because of their recent statements about gun violence following the Buffalo and Uvalde mass shootings.
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Ron Filipkowski 🇺🇦
@RonFilipkowski
The statement that reportedly caused Desantis to punish the Rays.

[True Dough]

1. First Disney and now baseball

Ron DeathSantis is coming after apple pie next!

[Diamond_Dog]

2. So ....

He’s pro gun violence??

[certainot]

26. possibly he heard TB might be pulling games from rw radio stations that he depends on

but that's just a rumor

[calimary]

36. Well, that's how it should be messaged from now on.

MAKE 'em deny it!

I think it was LBJ who originally said that. The context was - SAY what they're doing! Blow the whistle on 'em. Make your accusations. Confront, confront, confront. Make 'em deny it.

[In It to Win It]

3. -sigh-

[BigMin28]

4. Seems to me

The government, DeSantis is punishing an organization for practicing their 1st amendment right. How is this legal?

[In It to Win It]

10. Gotta sue to enforce it... and nobody's suing

[Deuxcents]

17. Give it time..

[SoCalDavidS]

35. Tired Of This Giving It Time Shit

Maybe we should just give it until 2024, when he's won the White House.

[Caliman73]

57. Actually, a lot of people are suing.

That is not a big of news as when DeSantis does his stupid stunts, but DeSantis is in court a lot and loses, a lot.

He often does his stupid stunts knowing they will ultimately fail because the point is the spectacle not necessarily the legislation. His stupid followers don't really care or care to see that he is getting slapped up in court.

Here is one such instance:

[In It to Win It]

58. Has anyone sued on first amendment grounds and won?

He does the stunts and they get publicity... but for people to know that he's losing, he has to be sued and lose on one of the high profile instances. If Disney sued, that catches headlines, but I don't think likely that Disney will sue. I don't it's likely the Tampa Bay Rays will sue.

The special olympics vaccine requirement is catching headlines because DeSantis threaten to fine them for having a vaccine requirement. I think that law would be struck down by the court if challenged, but they're not challenging it.

ETA: Forgot to the mention the lawsuit regarding social media law that went before the 11th circuit, he lost that on 1st amendment grounds. It's likely that will go up to the Supreme Court, along with the similar TX law. More people have to do it.

Also, I was referring to this particular instance with the Tampa Bay Rays, and not generally, that the baseball team isn't suing to enforce their 1st amendment right (for now).

[edhopper]

5. And he will be reelected

Either in spite of, or because of this shit.

[SoCalDavidS]

16. TRUTH!

He wouldn't be pulling this shit if he was worried about being re-elected.

[Demovictory9]

29. amazing

[Thrill]

6. Thought they hated cancel culture?

lol

[onecaliberal]

7. That's what they voted for.

[Takket]

8. Love how outkick used the term "political stances"

There was nothing political about the statement Tampa put out. Just that shootings are bad and we are donating to a charity that works to reduce gun violence.

More base feeding grandstanding for DeSantis who is on a crusade against the imaginary enemy of “wokism” that exists nowhere but in the delusional mind of his minions.

[Takket]

12. BTW if you haven't heard out outkick

Outkick is short for Outkick the Coverage which is a right win propaganda show disguised as sports coverage. It was started by Clay Travis who finally shed the pretense and took over for Rush when Rush finally died and went to hell.

[BeyondGeography]

9. What a total asshole

[Hugin]

14. Asshole incarnate.

To be precise.

[Norbert]

11. If DeathSentence is successful, what keeps the Rays from walking?

This isn't like they are as firmly entrenched in Central Florida like Disney is.

[SoCalDavidS]

19. It's Not That Easy To Just Relocate A Franchise

First of all, you stand to lose your existing fan base. Have to find a city that will be profitable, and is looking for a team. Most major cities already have one. They may already have a contract to play at that Stadium in Tampa, in which case they'll lose a shitton of $$$$$$$ by opting out.

Then the League has to approve the move.

Bottom line is, they ain't going anywhere. And DeSatan knows that.

[rpannier]

30. Looked up the Rays. They have been contemplating moving out of Florida since '14

They have looked at moving to Montreal
Their primary owner Sterberg (48%) has said they are staying for now
But, several of the other members of the ownership group feel differently
They moved from St Pete to Tampa a few years ago (I don't know the terms of their contract)

Don't know if they'll actually move, but it's not totally out of the question
Often what prevents teams from changing anything are the unspoken costs. One of the largest being new uniforms and other sports paraphernalia which the club is on the hook to repaying the companies that sell hats, jerseys, and such. It's one of the reasons the Redskins were reluctant to change the name, as the cost would have been quite high

[SoCalDavidS]

34. I Looked Up The Rays' Lease

It runs through 2027.

I find it interesting that starting in 2028, the Rays wanted to split their season between Tampa & Montreal, but MLB said no, they have to pick 1.

So they're probably stuck for awhile, and it seems unlikely they would put a dent in their fanbase right now by signaling that they plan to relocate in 2028, just to stick it to DeSatan.

[rpannier]

37. Now, I know. Thanks

The fanbase issue is the biggie. Esp since they'd have to announce, create new logos and deal with the vendors who have thousands of Tampa Bay Rays stuff they're trying to sell
Long way from when the Colts snuck out of Baltimore in the middle of the night and had few financial issues

[DonCoquixote]

54. you are right, but this needs to be added

The Rays, despite making a team that beats the YANKEES and RED SOX on a regulars basis, has a very low attendance record, the worst in the whole league. The owners know that in any one game, half the people are cheering for the visiting team. It is a disgrace, especially as the Rays manage to have one of the more serious teams, in the hardest division, despite having 1/4 the budget. It also helps that Montreal wants to finally revive it's days as a baseball stadium, despite the fact the French hate it (or maybe because the French hate it.)

[Baitball Blogger]

13. How can his vengeful streak not be legally actionable?

[Patterson]

15. Is there any talk of the Rays leaving the state?

[SoCalDavidS]

18. I Wonder If The Rays' Owner Is A repub nt

[rpannier]

27. Stuart Sternberg owns 48% of the club with the aid of Matthew Silverman 4%

Stuart Sternberg donations

Major League Political Action Committee (often over 20 years)
2020 Charlie Crist for Congress
2018 Crist and Castor for congress (both Dem)
2016 Hillary Victory Fund, Charlie Crist, Patrick Murphy and (ewwww) Chris Christie for Pres (Bruce Springsteen fans)
2012 Gillibrand for Senate
2010 Charlie Crist for Senate
2008 Obama for America
2004 Edwards for Pres Kerry for Pres
2000 Schumer for Senate

[SoCalDavidS]

32. So In DeSatan's Eyes, It's A Bonus Since He Gets To Own A Lib

Would Love to see Mr. Sternberg stand up to that Piece Of Shit publicly. I doubt it will happen, but it would be nice.

And DeSatan doesn't give a shit, because he knows it's Florida, and that he's going to win the election in November.

[BigmanPigman]

20. He's a psychopath, plain and simple....

The Signs of a Psychopath...

Glibness/superficial charm.
Grandiose sense of self-worth.
Need for stimulation/proneness to boredom.
Pathological lying.
Conning/manipulative.
Lack of remorse or guilt.
Shallow affect (i.e., reduced emotional responses)
Callous/lack of empathy.

He is a danger to the public.

[Initech]

21. Waht a fucking asshole!

Argh I hate this man, he's worse than Trump.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

23. Definitely more dangerous.

[Initech]

24. Rupert Murdoch is definitely pulling his strings.

It's like he takes any side that Fox News takes, which is why I say that Fox News is one of the biggest threats to America right now.

[AllaN01Bear]

22. !@#$%&*()_

[towerbum]

25. The Ray's not moving, ronny DeShitstain will be !

[SouthBayDem]

28. Personally I'd not defend state subsidies for sports

This seems to be the right thing done for the wrong reasons.

[Solly Mack]

31. The "Dear Leader" of Florida.

[Murphyb849]

33. And Tampa Bay Rays and Disney have fans who VOTE.

He is not a dictator.
He will go nowhere till people vote.

[Irish_Dem]

41. No problem, DeSantis plans are to control the voting process.

He is showing us what a dictator looks like.

[Deuxcents]

38. The players are the franchise this time

No players, no $$. Maybe another issue but being strong armed..hummm

[Dorian Gray]

39. Come on, Florida

vote the jerkwad out!

[Irish_Dem]

40. DeSantis is showing us what a dictatorship looks like.

The kind he and the rest of the GOP are installing in the US.

[Luciferous]

42. Why is the government paying for that in the first place?

[Mad_Machine76]

48. I get what you're saying

but that's not the issue here.

[scarletlib]

43. Yet the majority of Cubans will probably vote for him because Democrats are Socialists.

They don’t want to live under another Fidel. Someone should tell them to open their eyes and see the Fidel sitting in the Governor’s office.

[The Bopper]

44. Maybe they should move

Not a big proponent of sports franchises leaving their fans, but in this case there are dozens of states that would be happy to have professional baseball and not screw with them for being thoughtful of what is currently a pandemic of deadly proportions.

[lindysalsagal]

45. 3rd grade back-stabbing. Pathetic.

[Samrob]

46. No freedom of speech or thought in FL. Not a place I want to visit. nt

[Mad_Machine76]

47. If it wasn't clear before

it should be crystal clear between this and him now planning to go after Trans kids that he is a fascist

[ashredux]

49. To the people of Florida, read some history. You say you support the Governor

History is clear. Autocratic leaders eventually come for you as well.

[kimbutgar]

50. Fidel Desantis

He is really the little king dictator down there in Florida.

Trying to wipe out Democracy and fairness in Florida.

[AngryOldDem]

51. Jesus.

🤦‍♀️

Using the law itself as a damn weapon.

Question — how likely will this be overridden?

[LiberalFighter]

52. He should ban the team from playing in Florida.

Force them to move to a different state.

DeSatan should also move the stadium.

[Joenobody]

53. MLB should move all spring games out of FL

Time to do something worthwhile and move the grapefruit league.

Move it to GA. Still problems there but much better than FL.

[IcyPeas]

55. Revenge. It's the trumpian way.

[Kingofalldems]

56. Lots of 'DeSantis can't lose' in this thread.

Of course he can lose.

[Wonder Why]

59. Between Da Satanist and Da Sleazy corporate NFL using the state treasuries

for their own benefit, one doesn't know which is worse. We need to make sure they both lose.

That same thing goes for the Magic Fiefdom generating money from Floridians' taxes.

A pox on all of them.

[twodogsbarking]

60. A chip off the ole Trump block.