Mick Foley posted a video on his Instagram account addressing Republicans and independents directly, saying he refuses to believe that 35 percent of Americans support the way immigrants are currently being treated in the United States and appealing to people he has met throughout his career to speak up against what he described as cruelty being inflicted by the current administration.
Foley, who is a WWE Hall of Famer and spent decades traveling across every state in the country for wrestling appearances, framed his message around the personal relationships he has built with fans and colleagues over the course of his career.
“This is an earnest and honest attempt to talk to Republicans and independents who are not so far gone that they can still think for themselves,” Foley said at the top of the video.
“I Refuse to Believe It”
Foley said he was struck by a statistic from a television broadcast that stated 65 percent of Americans believe ICE has gone too far. While the broadcast framed the number as favorable, Foley said he was focused on the other side of it.
“I was left thinking, wait, 35 percent of the American public is for this?” Foley said. “I’m sorry, but I cannot believe that. I refuse to believe that three and a half out of every 10 Americans I meet would be in favor of our fellow human beings, our brothers and sisters, being treated in such an inhumane fashion.”
Foley said his disbelief is rooted in decades of personal experience with the American public across the political spectrum.
“I spent 15 years riding the roads with a variety of different wrestling friends and travel partners, one of whom I would consider to be very progressive. That would be Jim Cornette,” Foley said. “The others, not going to make anybody’s list of progressives, and definitely going to lean conservative, independent to conservative. I never had any problems with a single one of them. We had discussions, not arguments.”
Appealing to Fans Across the Country
Foley cited specific examples of kindness he has received from people he believes lean conservative, drawing a contrast between those interactions and the policies he is speaking against.
“I know it because when I was struggling, you were the people who let me stay in your spare room or on your couch because I didn’t have money for a motel,” Foley said. “You were the people, the guy who may have been wearing a MAGA hat, who gladly gave me instructions when my GPS wasn’t working. You are the people who smile with joy when I bounced your children on my knee as Santa Claus.”
Foley said he has worked in every state in the country and has “felt the love everywhere I’ve been.”
“I just refuse to believe that these people who treat me with such kindness would turn a blind eye to the cruelty that this administration is inflicting on others,” Foley said.
“America Is Better Than This”
Foley listed specific actions he said the United States should not accept.
“America is better than zip-tying senior citizens,” Foley said. “America is better than chasing down agricultural workers or abducting day laborers at Home Depot. America is better than using children for bait. Agents made a child knock on the door asking to let them in in order to see if anyone else was home.”
Foley continued: “We are better than inflicting terror on a wide swath of this public based only on the language they speak and the color of their skin. And I think that many of you believe we’re better than this too.”
“The Time to Speak Up Is Now”
Foley said a friend shared a quote with him that prompted the video. He recited the quote in the video.
“It’s okay to admit you were for something and no longer are. It’s okay to say that you like something in principle but not in its execution,” Foley said. “The best time to speak up would have been earlier. The second best time to speak up is now, because years from now, when there is nothing to lose, we will all have been against this. But the time to speak up and state your case is now.”
Foley said he firmly believes the country is better than what is currently happening but acknowledged that he could be wrong.
“I could be wrong, and if I’m wrong, I’ll be devastated, because I will have completely lost faith in the United States of America and its people,” Foley said. “But you can make a difference by just speaking truth to power.”
Foley closed the video by pointing to polling and said that if the 35 percent approval number is inaccurate and the real number is closer to 10 percent, as he suspects, then the public has the ability to change the direction of the conversation.
“Donald Trump reads the polls,” Foley said. “35 percent is bad. It’s not as bad as the 10 percent that I think is more accurate. Please make a difference by using your voice.”
