Stephen A. Smith Praises Unity in Sports World After Hamlin’s Collapse Compared To House ‘Fighting Like A Bunch Of Children’ in Speaker Vote

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith praised the sports world for unity after Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin‘s collapse and blasted the House of Representatives, which has failed to elect a speaker after multiple rounds of voting.

Hamlin went into cardiac arrest Monday night after he made a tackle on Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins. Bills assistant athletic trainer Denny Kellington gave Hamlin CPR before he was rushed to a local Cincinnati hospital, where he was intubated and was listed in critical condition. Hamlin’s health has progressed well as the week went on. The medical team removed his breathing tube Friday morning, and he could speak to his teammates.

On Friday’s First Take, the good news broke about Hamlin’s ongoing recovery, and Smith compared the unity in the sports world to the U.S. House of Representatives, where Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has failed twelve times so far to secure the majority vote needed to become Speaker.

“You really, really appreciate what you’ve seen this week because our society needs it,” Smith said. “Think about what’s going on right now. You don’t have people protesting in the streets the way that we were years ago.”

Smith reminded his First Take audience of the ongoing battle within the House, with Republicans unable to come together on a decision of who should serve as speaker.

“While this is all going on, they can’t even name a speaker for the House on Capital Hill,” Smith said. “Fighting like a bunch of children, you can’t get stuff right.”

“But the world of sports is standing up,” he continued, “and people from all phases, from all facets, are coming together in a reminding us of the good-will of what America, not just is, but what is always supposed to be, and the sports world that gets maligned constantly is the one that does it better than everybody else.”

Watch above via ESPN.

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