Giants president slams council member for anti-mask rally: 'F--- that guy'
Warning: Story contains coarse language
San Francisco Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi was outraged by how a council member in Scottsdale, Arizona, behaved at an anti-mask rally Wednesday.
"I mean, fuck that guy," Zaidi said Thursday, according to Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic. "You can quote me on that. Fuck that guy."
Council member Guy Phillips appeared to mock George Floyd - who died in police custody in May - by saying "I can't breathe, I can't breathe" before taking off his mask and referring to it as "insanity."
Here’s video of Scottsdale City Councilman Guy Phillips shouting "I Can't Breathe" before removing his mask at today's Anti-Mask Rally in Arizona:
— Rex Chapman🏇🏼 (@RexChapman) June 25, 2020
Mocking Eric Garner & George Floyd and many others in this moment is something I feel compelled to expose...pic.twitter.com/4drg23zWUD
Phillips has since apologized for his actions.
The Giants' spring training facility is in Scottsdale, though they had to close camp last week after an employee and family member experienced flu-like symptoms. Both tested negative for COVID-19.
"I think anyone would have difficulty getting beyond the abhorrent insensitivity of his statement," Zaidi said. "But even if you can get beyond that - the fact that this guy is condoning behavior that put our staff and players at risk? Like, seriously. Fuck that guy. I can't believe that that guy is a public official in this country. It's unbelievable."
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey also slammed Phillips for his behavior.
Just flat out wrong. Despicable doesn’t go far enough. The final words of George Floyd should NEVER be invoked like this. Anyone who mocks the murder of a fellow human has no place in public office. Period. https://t.co/l0wyVE2BP4
— Doug Ducey (@dougducey) June 25, 2020