{"id":24197,"date":"2026-08-19T17:28:26","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T17:28:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=24197"},"modified":"2026-08-19T17:28:26","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T17:28:26","slug":"ted-cruz-dunks-on-nike-as-nearly-200b-disappears-from-companys-value","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=24197","title":{"rendered":"Ted Cruz dunks on Nike as nearly $200B disappears from company’s value"},"content":{"rendered":"


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NEW<\/span>You can now listen to Fox News articles!\n <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, is again dunking on a popular sports brand as the company\u2019s stock price hits a 12-year low.<\/p>\n

Cruz joined in on social media criticism of Nike, the Swoosh-emblazoned brand whose stock price has been on a steady decline for years.<\/p>\n

The lawmaker responded to conservative social media influencer Douglass Mackey\u2019s list of reasons why Nike\u2019s stock was suffering in a callback to his own boycott of the brand several years ago.<\/p>\n

MARY CAIN’S BOOK AND NIKE’S TRANS-ATHLETE STUDY REVEAL THE SAME PATTERN OF CORPORATE HYPOCRISY<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, arrives to a hearing in the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 17, 2025, in Washington, D.C.<\/span> (Heather Diehl\/Getty Images)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

“Sad & predictable,” Cruz posted on X, where he reiterated that Nike\u2019s decision to nix its Betsy Ross themed shoe was how the company “lost me.”<\/p>\n

“For my whole life, I wore nearly 100% Nike for athletic wear,” Cruz said. “Kaepernick pissed me off, but when they cancelled the Betsy Ross shoe it showed that their marketing plan was America-hate. I went out & bought brand new shoes, shorts, t-shirts.”<\/p>\n

“Turns out I wasn\u2019t the only one,” he continued. “#GoWokeGoBroke.”<\/p>\n

Nike\u2019s stock price hit a 12-year low earlier this week, dropping nearly 80% since the company\u2019s all-time high in 2021.<\/p>\n

NIKE CRITICIZED FOR WALKING BACK BOSTON MARATHON AD FOLLOWING \u2018PACE SHAMING\u2019 BACKLASH<\/strong><\/p>\n

The yearslong tumble downward saw nearly $200 billion in market value erased for the company, which five years ago saw its share price hit an all-time high of $177.51.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also not Cruz\u2019s first foray into bashing the brand.<\/p>\n

In 2019, Cruz joined several conservatives to boycott Nike after the company opted to dump its planned Betsy Ross-themed shoe.<\/p>\n

Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who earned the ire of conservatives for sitting and kneeling during the national anthem in an act of protest against police brutality a decade ago, reportedly urged the company to drop the product.<\/p>\n

MLB GREAT JIM EDMONDS SAYS HE WOULDN’T HAVE TOLERATED NATIONAL ANTHEM PROTESTS: ‘WE STAND UP AND SALUTE’<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Colin Kaepernick, No. 7 of the San Francisco 49ers, kneels for the national anthem before a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Levi’s Stadium on Oct. 23, 2016, in Santa Clara, Calif.<\/span> (Getty Images)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

He argued that the Revolutionary-era flag, with 13 white stars in a circle on a blue backdrop, was a symbol that had been adopted by White nationalist groups and a reminder of a time when Black people were enslaved.<\/p>\n

Nike said in a statement at the time that it opted to yank the shoe, which was set for a July Fourth release, because of “concerns that it could unintentionally offend and detract from the nation’s patriotic holiday.”<\/p>\n

Cruz at the time blasted the company and dumped his Nike gear.<\/p>\n

“It’s a good thing @Nike only wants to sell sneakers to people who hate the American flag…. @NFL #HappyFourth,” he said on X.<\/p>\n

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP<\/strong><\/p>\n

He wasn\u2019t the only major political figure to take a shot at the brand. Then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., criticized the decision to pull the Betsy Ross-themed shoe, and countered that if any other company had the same idea, he\u2019d be the first in line to buy.<\/p>\n

“If we\u2019re in a political environment where the American flag has become controversial to Americans, I think we\u2019ve got a problem,” McConnell said.<\/p>\n

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Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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