Spokesperson For N.C. Gov. Pat McCrory: Montel Williams Gets No Apology For Image ‘Misappropriated By Bigots’; ‘Not About Politics’

A spokesperson for N.C. Governor Pat McCrory says Montel Williams is showing a lack of understanding by demanding an apology for the unauthorized use of his face and words in a campaign ad. Montel is threatening legal action against the Governor and his campaign, but Ricky Diaz, speaking for the campaign, is standing firm and insisting that Williams and McCrory aren’t so far apart in their opinions at all.

It began with a political ad. The full ad, which is for Pat McCrory’s re-election as North Carolina Governor, is below, but the relevant part comes in the first six seconds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yID8-6x9IX8

Clips of television personalities flash by, beginning with Bill O’Reilly, saying,

The war on cops….

The scene immediately flashes to Montel Williams, speaking with CNN‘s Don Lemon, continuing,

The rhetoric is being ratcheted way too high.

As Williams opens his mouth to speak again, the ad quickly flashes away.

Montel says the brief snippet falsely implies he supports Pat McCrory and that McCrory’s campaign used his face and words without permission. According to the News & Observer, he is seriously considering legal action over the ad.

In the meantime, though, the battle over Williams’ likeness and McCrory’s campaign rages on social media.

Ricky Diaz, a representative for McCrory, declared that the ad was supposed to capitalize on one thing McCrory and Montel agree on, that police deserve respect and protection and insinuated that perhaps his unwillingness to be associated with the campaign indicates that Montel doesn’t actually agree that protecting police isn’t a one-sided agenda. He also declared that there would be no apology.

For his part, Williams appears to have doubled down on his determination to hold Pat McCrory’s campaign responsible.

He also spoke to clarify his lack of support for the campaign, declaring that racist and anti-LGBT laws make him unwilling to support the Governor’s re-election.

“Since Pat McCrory put me in his political ad for reasons passing understanding, let me take a moment to tell the truth about Pat. Pat is a bigot – first there was a Court finding Pat attempted to make it harder for black people to vote with “surgical precision.” Then there was the LGBT thing. My support for the 95+% of law enforcement that do their jobs with honor and distinction is not in question. I simply refuse to allow my name and likeness to be misappropriated by bigots.

He also had a response to Diaz’s assertion that the ad was about supporting police and “not political.”

To be entirely clear, Montel Williams has been speaking out against Pat McCrory’s laws and policies for some time. His response to the political ad is not out of the blue. In fact, he actively endorsed McCrory’s opponent as a response to HB2, the bill McCrory signed requiring state offices to segregate bathrooms by gender, where ‘gender’ is defined by the label on one’s birth certificate.

In light of @PatMcCroryNC signing #hb2 I am proud to endorse @RoyCooperNC for Governor and hope to campaign for him in NC… #WeAreNotThis

— Montel Williams (@Montel_Williams) April 7, 2016

He also hammered at the McCrory administration for the other effects of the bill, including wording that may prevent anyone from suing at the state level if subjected to employment discrimination, including discrimination based on status as a United States veteran.

Though the governor did not respond directly to the demands of the actor and television personality, he went on various news and talk shows to defend the law.

In the video below from May, when Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren asks about the implications for employment discrimination, McCrory maintains that no protections are affected, that he does not think it should be legal to fire someone for being gay, and that, in fact, he believes a federal law should be passed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0i8gleKk-A

“In fact, I believe the Federal government does need to deal with this discrimination issue. I think the US. Congress needs to further clarify not only sexual orientation being a protected class, but we need to figure out what gender identity and gender expression is.”

It isn’t clear if Montel Williams has already begun legal action against Pat McCrory and his campaign, or if he is still considering his options.

[Photo by John Shearer/Getty Images for ATI]