A Southwest Airways pilot is going through an inside investigation after utilizing a phrase over a flight’s public deal with system that has turn into synonymous with a profane insult for President Joe Biden.
The investigation was introduced Sunday by the airline. It comes after the pilot signed off his greeting to passengers aboard a flight from Houston to Albuquerque final Friday morning by saying, “Let’s go, Brandon.”
Using the phrase drew audible gasps from some aboard the flight, in accordance with Colleen Lengthy, an Related Press reporter who was on the aircraft and who first reported the incident.
“Let’s go Brandon” originated from an Oct. 2 NASCAR race on the Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama, the place Brandon Brown, a 28-year-old driver, was being interviewed by NBC Sports activities reporter Kelli Stavast.
Behind Brown and the interviewer, the group was chanting one thing. Stavast urged they had been chanting “Let’s go, Brandon,” solely to later have it turn into apparent that the group was saying “F— Joe Biden.”
Since then, the phrase has turn into more and more widespread amongst conservative circles to secretly insult the president. Rep. Jeff Duncan, R-S.C., Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Rep. Invoice Posey, R-Fla., have used the phrase on social media or on the Home ground throughout a speech criticizing the Biden administration.
In an announcement, Southwest Airways stated it “takes pleasure in offering a welcoming, comfy, protected, and respectful setting” for its hundreds of thousands of consumers, including that it will be reminding workers that “public expression of private opinions whereas on responsibility is unacceptable.”
“Southwest doesn’t condone workers sharing their private political views whereas on the job serving our clients, and one worker’s particular person perspective shouldn’t be interpreted as the perspective of Southwest and its collective 54,000 workers,” it stated.
“Southwest doesn’t tolerate any habits that encourages divisiveness, because it doesn’t mirror the Southwest Hospitality and inclusiveness for which we’re identified and try to supply every day on each flight,” the assertion continued.
Southwest’s inside investigation comes as Biden’s approval score has sunk to 42 p.c, in accordance with outcomes from the most recent nationwide NBC Information ballot.
Kurt Chirbas contributed.
