Reggie Bush came to the defense of Adrian Peterson on Tuesday, and he may have opened himself up to some criticism of his own parenting style in the process.
During an appearance on WFAN’s “Boomer and Carton” show, Bush said that he will not hesitate to “harshly” discipline his daughter if the situation calls for it.
“I was punished the same way,” Bush said. “And I know a lot of my friends and a lot of the guys I played with, they were punished the same way, too.
“I have a 1-year-old daughter, and I discipline her. I definitely will try to — will obviously not leave bruises or anything like that on her. But I definitely will discipline her harshly depending on what the situation is.”
When asked specifically if he would ever use a “switch” to hit his daughter, Bush did not rule it out.
“I would possibly consider it, depending on what she did,” Bush said.
Like it or not, times have changed. Just as Peterson should have known that type of discipline isn’t acceptable in 2014, Bush should know that he is going to open himself up to scrutiny by defending it. When asked if he would hit his daughter with a branch or stick like Peterson allegedly did to his child, Bush backpedaled.
“No, I didn’t say a branch or a stick,” he said. “I said spanking. Spanking is different than a branch or a stick.”
It’s a polarizing debate, and probably one that the Detroit Lions wish Bush would ignore for the time being.
