Trump Mixes Politics and Sports on Purpose?

Washington - President Trump is mixing politics and sports by calling out professional athletes who refuse to stand for the National Anthem.

"Wouldn't you love to see one of those NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, ' get that son of a b**** off the field right now," said President Trump. 

NFL protests are back in the national spotlight after President Trump took on the National Football League and the First Amendment.

"He's not emphasizing sports, you're missing the purpose of his message," said Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. "He's emphasizing something that should be unifying." 

But the President's comments appeared to only fuel the feud between the NFL and the White House. 

"President Trump knows exactly what he is doing," said ABC News Political Director Rick Klein. "I think when he sees a cultural moment and the potential to put himself in the middle of something that he knows is rather divisive he seeks it out."

A new ABC News/Washington Post polls shows 66% of Americans say the President has done more to divide than unite. 

Last week six NFL players protested racial injustice. That number grew to more than 200 this weekend. 

So, while the attention was on the grid iron, issues like healthcare, a new travel ban and North Korea took a back seat. 

"There are lots of things he doesn't want to be talking about, the North Korean nuclear threat, the healthcare bill that might go down again this week," said Klein. "I think he finds an opportunity to put himself in the middle of a big story or make a story even bigger, pour gasoline on the fire and make that the story instead."

It appeared to work as Monday's press briefing was sparked with questions about the numerous tweets from Trump on the NFL. Trump continues to defend his remarks saying that this has to do with respect for the country, flag, and national anthem - and nothing else.