Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) said Wednesday that she is “furious” over the NFL’s handling of running back Ray Rice’s domestic abuse.
Rice was released by the Baltimore Ravens this week and suspended indefinitely after video surfaced of him punching his then-fiancee, now wife, in an elevator. The NFL had previously given him only a two-game suspension, when the only public video showed Rice dragging his unconscious fiancee, Janay Palmer, out of the elevator.
{mosads}”They handled it so poorly, Andrea, I am so furious about this because there were no facts at issue,” Gillibrand said on MSNBC’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports.” “He admitted to beating his wife. We saw the video of him dragging her out of an elevator.
There was nothing left to be discussed. He should have been fired right there and then,” said added.
Gillibrand has been a vocal advocate for female victims of violence, pressing the Pentagon to change its policies for handling sexual assaults in the ranks.
The New York senator has been on a tour for her new book, Off the Sidelines, telling women to “raise your voice, change the world.”
The memoir received attention after Gillibrand shared stories of derogatory comments, including about her weight, from male lawmakers.
Gillibrand is seen by some as a potential Democratic vice presidential pick or as a possible candidate to head the ticket in the future.