Republican Senate candidate runs ad standing up for the Washington Redskins name

Republican Senate candidate Ed Gillespie, the former RNC chair now running against Democratic Sen. Mark Warner in Virginia, ran a new TV ad during Monday night's Redskins-Cowboys game on an interesting issue for a candidate who has been lagging in the polls: Promising to stand up for the name of the Washington Redskins football team, which has been criticized from many quarters as a racial slur.
"Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has a bill to force the Redskins to change their name," the announcer says in a menacing tone. "Mark Warner refused to answer if he supports the bill or not. Why won't Warner fight the anti-Redskins bill? Why won't he answer the question?"
"I'll answer the question," Gillespie says to the camera, from a kitchen table setting. "I'll oppose the anti-Redskins bill. Let's focus on creating jobs, raising take-home pay, and making our nation safer — and let the Redskins handle what to call their team."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Warner has mostly stayed out of the Redskins name controversy. For example, he was one of just a few Senate Democrats to not sign a letter urging the team to change its name. At the time, his office told The Washington Post: "Senator Warner believes that it's not for Congress to dictate what the league does. He believes that over time, team names will change to reflect the times, as happened with the Washington Wizards."
The Washington Wizards, which Warner's spokesman referenced, used to be known as the Washington Bullets. --Eric Kleefeld
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
The Week contest: Flight fraud
Puzzles and Quizzes
-
Is Trump sidelining Congress' war powers?
Today's Big Question The Iran attack renews a long-running debate
-
6 productivity-ready homes with great offices
Feature Featuring an office with a gas fireplace in Oregon and a shared workspace with wraparound windows in Massachusetts
-
Trump judge pick told DOJ to defy courts, lawyer says
Speed Read Emil Bove, a top Justice Department official nominated by Trump for a lifetime seat, stands accused of encouraging government lawyers to mislead the courts and defy judicial orders
-
Mamdani upsets Cuomo in NYC mayoral primary
Speed Read Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani beat out Andrew Cuomo in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary
-
Supreme Court clears third-country deportations
Speed Read The court allowed Trump to temporarily resume deporting migrants to countries they aren't from
-
Judges order release of 2 high-profile migrants
Speed Read Kilmar Ábrego García is back in the US and Mahmoud Khalil is allowed to go home — for now
-
US assessing bomb damage to Iran nuclear sites
Speed Read Trump claims this weekend's US bombing obliterated Tehran's nuclear program, while JD Vance insists the US is 'not at war with Iran'
-
Trump's LA deployment in limbo after court rulings
Speed Read Judge Breyer ruled that Trump's National Guard deployment to Los Angeles was an 'illegal' overreach. But a federal appellate court halted the ruling.
-
Marines, National Guard in LA can detain Americans
speed read The troops have been authorized to detain anyone who interferes with immigration raids
-
Trump vows 'very big force' against parade protesters
Speed Read The parade, which will shut down much of the capital, will celebrate the US Army's 250th anniversary and Trump's 79th birthday