Michael Strahan addressed backlash he received for not placing his hand over his heart during the national anthem — and subsequently throwing a reporter’s phone when asked about the controversy.
“I wanna address what happened this past weekend, and I feel like I need to address it, because it spilled over to the point where I’d get out of my car today, and I’m ambushed by a media outlet here at my house,” the “Good Morning America” co-host began a selfie video posted to Instagram Tuesday night.
Strahan admitted he was “not proud of the way [he] handled that whole situation,” but he hoped people would “understand” where he was coming from when he snatched the videographer’s phone and tossed it into a bush outside of his home.
“You gotta protect your family, and you gotta protect your home, which is what I felt like I needed to do in that moment,” he said.
The former football player, 52, then explained his side of the controversial moment last weekend when he did not place his hand over his heart during the national anthem while surrounded by hundreds of Navy service members in San Diego for the “Fox NFL Sunday” Veterans Day broadcast.
“I didn’t have my hand over my chest,” he recalled. “Everyone thought, ‘He’s protesting, he’s making a statement,’ which is so far from the truth. I have nothing to protest. I have no statement to be made. The only statement that should be made and that I wanna make is that I love the military. I’ve always loved the military, and I will always love the military.”
Strahan reminded his followers that he comes from a military background and “grew up on a military base” with his father. His brother, sister and cousins also served in the military.
“The fact of somebody saying I’m unpatriotic couldn’t be any further from the truth, and if you want the truth, I’ll tell you: The truth is that I was caught up in the moment,” he said.
“I’m looking at all these young sailors standing there at attention before the national anthem played, and I’m thinking to myself, ‘How incredible? How incredible to be that young and to know that you wanna do this?’ Like, it’s such a commitment, but you’re willing to commit to something that you know gives us our freedoms, plain and simple. I’m just sitting there in amazement.”
The former NFL athlete said that by the time he noticed he was the only one with his hand not over his heart, he did not know what was the right thing to do.
“I somewhat panicked, and I’m like, ‘Do I be the fool that puts his hand over his heart after? Or do I just stand here with my hands in front of me respectfully?’ Which, that’s what I did, and that’s what happened,” he shared.
Strahan offered an apology if he “offended any of our military and veterans” because that was “never [his] intent.”
“I’m a product of the military, a proud lover of the military and a proud lover of all those who served before now and who will serve in the future,” he concluded.
The former New York Giants defensive end shared the statement after fans called him out on social media for his “disrespectful” behavior during the broadcast.
The situation escalated when a Daily Mail reporter asked him about the backlash in front of his home, and Strahan replied by throwing the photographer’s phone in a bush.
“Don’t come to my house,” Strahan repeatedly said.
