*Update*
Mr. Garofalo has issued a press release apologizing for his remarks on twitter. The full press release is as follows:
"In the last 24 hours, I've had the opportunity to re-learn one of life's lessons: whenever any of us are offering opinions, it is best to refer to people as individuals as opposed to groups. Last night, I publicly commented on the NBA and I sincerely apologize to those who I unfairly categorized. The NBA has many examples of players and owners who are role models for our communities and for our country. Those individuals did not deserve that criticism and I apologize. In addition, it's been brought to my attention that I was mistaken and the NBA policy on drug enforcement is stronger than I previously believed. Again, I offer my sincere apologies for my comments," stated Rep. Garofalo.
— Rep. Pat Garofalo (@PatGarofalo) March 9, 2014
*End Update* Republican state representative Pat Garofalo sent out a controversial and borderline racist tweet concerning the NBA and it’s players Sunday night. Garofalo commented on the state of the NBA and the negative effects the players would have on the nations crime rate of the league were to fold.
Let's be honest, 70% of teams in NBA could fold tomorrow + nobody would notice a difference w/ possible exception of increase in streetcrime — Rep. Pat Garofalo (@PatGarofalo) March 9, 2014
Garofalo faced instant backlash on Twitter as many people referred to him as a racist and questioned his true intentions with the tweet. Deadspin reached out to Garofalo for comment on the tweet and his response was that he was referring to NBA players' “above the law” attitude and the NBA's high arrest rate. The full quote is as follows:
“I was talking about the NBA’s high arrest rate and that their punishment for positive drugs tests are weaker than other leagues. No intent beyond that. The culture among many pro athletes that they are above the law is the problem, not people like me pointing that problem out.”
Garofalo later answered some of the tweets sent to him by other Twitter users concerning the crime rates of NFL and even other politicians.
.@ANewsIV Fair point. But then again NFL rosters are almost 5 times larger. — Rep. Pat Garofalo (@PatGarofalo) March 9, 2014
@BBallJenky True. Can't really dispute that! — Rep. Pat Garofalo (@PatGarofalo) March 9, 2014
— Rep. Pat Garofalo (@PatGarofalo) March 9, 2014
Garofalo hasn’t been publicly disciplined for his tweet, but he is now another shining example of when politicians use Twitter to portray their views. Good luck in re-election Mr. Garofalo.
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