New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is pitching Nike on a move to her state after Arizona's Republican governor pulled funding for the shoe company over a flap about an American flag-themed shoe.
"We want those jobs," Grisham spokeswoman Tripp Stelnicki said. "It's wild that anyone would jeopardize viable employment for potentially hundreds of state residents because of some political virtue-signaling."
Grisham tweeted: "Let's talk" to Nike on a threat started by Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey explaining why Arizona was withdrawing all financial incentive dollars for the company to locate there.
"Today was supposed to be a good day in Arizona, with the announcement of a major @Nike investment in Goodyear, AZ," Ducey tweeted.
"And then this news broke [Monday]," he said, referencing The Wall Street Journal report Nike was scrapping plans to put a Betsy Ross flag on a sneaker after former NFL star Colin Kaepernick asked them not to.
Kaepernick objected to these shoes, reportedly claiming some people would be offended by the American flag from the slavery era.
"Words cannot express my disappointment at this terrible decision. I am embarrassed for Nike," he said.
"Instead of celebrating American history the week of our nation's independence, Nike has apparently decided that Betsy Ross is unworthy, and has bowed to the current onslaught of political correctness and historical revisionism," he added.
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