Baseball fans know Steve Garvey for his sports achievements in the 1970s and 1980s. As for everyone else, they will have to live with the unpleasant experience of learning about Garvey as he tries to be a good Republican by attacking anti-war students.
Garvey fell in love with baseball from an early age, becoming a batboy for the Brooklyn Dodgers, the New York Yankees, and the Detroit Tigers during spring training when he was only seven years old. His interest in baseball continued in college when he started a prolific first baseman career. Garvey began playing in the big league after joining the Dodgers in 1969. He helped the Dodgers win the World Series in 1981 before signing with the Padres in 1982. He would go on to end his career as a baseball player there in 1987.
Over almost two decades of professional baseball, Garvey was an NL All-Star for 10 seasons. Given
his impressive streak of 1,207 games, he holds the record for most consecutive games played. He won two MVP awards from the National League and four Golden Glove Awards. His importance for the Padres is so great that the team officially retired their number six position, as no one could ever take Garvey’s place. For anyone, it would be an honor to enjoy retirement knowing how much they’ve achieved. Unfortunately, Garvey decided to launch a political career as a Republican and is furthering the same by making controversial declarations against college students’ right to free speech.
Steve Garvey’s controversial statement about college students, explained
On October 7, 2023, a barbaric attack by the fundamentalist Islamic organization Hamas left a trail of destruction in Israeli territory. Israel decided to respond to the terrorist attack with a declaration of war, using its military to lay waste to Gaza. Seven months later, the war still rages on, with the count of civilian casualties hitting the thousands. It’s a complex situation. On the one hand, it’s easy to understand why Israel spared no effort to hunt down the terrorists responsible for the attack on October 2023. However, in their supposed pursuit of justice, Israel has killed mostly women and children. So, not everyone is happy with the U.S. direct support of the Israeli war machine.
Over the past week, students from colleges all over the country organized protests against the Israel-Hamas war and the constantly rising number of civilian lives it has cost in Gaza. As it turns out, Garvey had something to say about it, declaring that these protests are made by “terrorists” at a press conference (via Politco). According to Garvey, free speech is important, but denouncing the indiscriminate attack on civilians is the same as being a “Hamas supporter.” For the Senate candidate, interrupting classes instead of using an opportunity to learn is a terrorist attack in itself.
“They’re pro-terrorists. They’re supporting terrorism.”
It is evident that Garvey is determined to show how a baseball career doesn’t prepare anyone for politics. He is on the run to replace the late California Senator Laphonza Butler, with Democratic candidate Adam Schiff being the last obstacle before he takes the chair. So, since the baseball player-turned-politician doesn’t have anything worthwhile to say, his strategy is to compare students to terrorists in the hope this puts him in the media spotlight. But the only thing he is accomplishing with his thoughtless words is proving why he should not be the Senator.
