President Donald Trump tweeted that it was "fake news" that his chief of staff John Kelly disagreed with Trump's continuing criticism of the National Football League and its players who kneel during the national anthem. | Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images Trump says chief of staff backs his NFL criticisms In tweets, Trump calls reports John Kelly disagrees with his attacks on NFL player protests ‘fake news.'

President Donald Trump tweeted on Monday evening that his chief of staff, John Kelly, “totally agrees” with his scathing criticism of the NFL and protests by professional football players.

In a series of tweets, Trump responded to a CNN report that cited anonymous administration sources as saying Kelly was not pleased with Trump’s decision to attack the player over the past few days. The same report also quoted Kelly in an interview as saying he was being personally “appalled” by the protests, which players have carried out to draw attention to what they say is law enforcement’s targeting black Americans.


Trump called the report “fake news” — a familiar refrain when he disagrees with coverage — and said there was no daylight between him and Kelly on the issue. “General John Kelly totally agrees w/ my stance on NFL players and the fact that they should not be disrespecting our FLAG or GREAT COUNTRY!” Trump wrote on Twitter.

In a follow-up tweet, Trump continued: “Tremendous backlash against the NFL and its players for disrespect of our Country. #StandForOurAnthem .”

Trump ignited a back-and-forth with athletes in the NBA and NFL over the weekend, starting during a rally in Huntsville, Alabama, on Friday night. He called on NFL owners to fire any player who wouldn’t stand for the national anthem — a “son of bitch,” in his words.

In follow-up tweets over the weekend, Trump kept up his criticism of NFL players and also targeted the NBA’s Stephen Curry, whose invitation to the White House he revoked. Curry’s team, the reigning NBA champion Golden State Warriors, later announced it wouldn’t visit the White House.

On Monday night, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones joined with Cowboys players and staff to lock arms and briefly kneel before a Monday Night Football game with the Arizona Cardinals. They rose before the American flag was unfurled and before the singing of the national anthem.

That came after an NFL Sunday in which players across the league engaged in protests after Trump’s comments with players across the league, kneeling or staying in the locker room during the playing of the national anthem.

