Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) is asking Major League Baseball (MLB) commissioner Rob Manfred if he plans to maintain his membership at the Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia after the league moved the 2021 All-Star Game from the state to protest the new election law.
In a letter Rubio penned to Manfred, he wrote, “I write to ask you whether you intend to maintain your membership at Augusta National Golf Club. As you are well aware, the exclusive members-only club is located in the State of Georgia.”
The senator argued the decision will have a larger impact on several small and minority-owned businesses than the “new election law ever will.” Rubio claimed the move is one “that reeks of hypocrisy.”
He continued, “Will Major League Baseball now end its engagement with nations that do not hold elections at all like China and Cuba? Will you end your lucrative financial relationship with Tencent, a company with deep ties to the Communist Party and actively helps the Chinese Government hunt down and silence political dissidents?”
Read the letter below:
.@marcorubio letter to Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred asking him if he’ll relinquish his personal membership at Georgia’s Augusta National Golf Club, after MLB moves All Star Game and Amateur Draft out of Georgia pic.twitter.com/TckKANVeIR
— Pat Ward (@WardDPatrick) April 5, 2021
Touching on the probability of the league standing up to China, Rubio wrote he has no “expectation” it will happen.
“Taking the All-Star game out of Georgia is an easy way to signal virtues without significant financial fallout. But speaking out against the Chinese Communist Party would involve a significant loss of revenue and being closed out of a lucrative market,” Rubio added.
Taking aim at Manfred directly, Rubio said to cancel his membership would “require a personal sacrifice, as opposed to the woke corporate virtue signaling of moving the All Star Game from Atlanta.”
The league made the announcement on Friday.
“Major League Baseball fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box,” Manfred said in a statement. “Fair access to voting continues to have our unwavering support.”
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) is adamant the bill expands access to voting.
“I’m telling you the truth about this bill,” Kemp told WABE radio, “It expands access.”
