The National Football League's punishment for acts of domestic violence is too lenient, according to U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal. He responded to the new video showing former NFL player Ray Rice knocking his then-fiancée unconscious in an elevator.
Blumenthal said that even the new rules of a six-game suspension for first-time offenders is too lenient. Rice was only suspended for two games before his team released him on Monday. The NFL later suspended him indefinitely.
"My feeling is that these rules ought to be much stronger, stiffer, tougher, and they ought to be enforced more rigorously," Blumenthal said on CNN Tuesday. "The NFL is failing to set a good example for the American public."
He echoed similar sentiments on Twitter:
It shouldn’t take a video to do the right thing. I commend @Ravens but urge @nflcommish to act on harsher penalties for domestic abuse. -RB
— Richard Blumenthal (@SenBlumenthal) September 8, 2014
Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, acknowledges that Congress cannot change the culture of the league, but he did mention some areas where Washington could exert pressure.
"The NFL enjoys certain tax treatment, maybe there ought to be certain tax incentives for stronger penalties," he said. "The NFL has certain privileges in terms of communications. The federal communications laws may be used as an incentive."
Blumenthal told ESPN on Monday that there is a need for new reforms, and included Congress as a place where those reforms could come from.
Listen below to Blumenthal's comments:
The league does have significant representation on Capitol Hill, though. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, it has spent $7.32 million on lobbying since 2009.
Blumenthal has spoken out against the NFL on other issues too, including media blackouts and the name of the Washington, D.C. franchise.
