USA Gymnastics interim president and CEO Mary Bono is resigning after only days in the position after coming under fire for posting an anti-Nike tweet. Bono was a Republican congresswoman from 1998-2013, representing the 44th and 45th California districts during her tenure. Unfortunately, it seems that, in spite of her retirement, the GOP racism is still strong in her.
On Friday, USA Gymnastics named Bono as its new interim leader to take the organization into a new era after the fallout from Larry Nassar’s long-enabled abuse. However, she was divisive from the start. HuffPost reports:
The day after her new role was announced, Bono came under fire for posting a photo on Twitter of her covering the Nike logo on her golf shoes. The photo suggested that Bono was protesting the sportswear company’s move to partner with Colin Kaepernick, a former NFL player who has kneeled during the national anthem to protest police brutality and racial inequality.
Olympian Simone Biles called out Bono on Twitter, writing: “Mouth drop. Don’t worry, it’s not like we needed a smarter USA Gymnastics president or any sponsors or anything.”
Bono deleted the tweet, but the damage was done. She was already on shaky ground due to her past. Bono had worked with Faegre Baker Daniels, the law firm that represented USA Gymnastics as the Larry Nassar scandal arose. Another Olympic gold medalist, Aly Raisman, expressed her opposition to Bono, too.
Considering that it hasn’t been a week since she took the job and she’s already controversial, Bono did the organization a favor in resigning. She stayed defensive to the end, justifying both the tweet and her work with the law firm, saying she “proudly” stands behind it.
With respect to Mr. Kaepernick, he nationally exercised his first amendment right to kneel. I exercised mine: to mark over on my own golf shoes, the logo of the company sponsoring him for 'believing in something even if it means sacrificing everything' — while at a tournament for families who have lost a member of the armed services (including my brother-in-law, a Navy SEAL) who literally 'sacrificed everything
View the full statement below:
Good riddance.