Republican Congresswoman Closely Monitoring NFL Lockout

Despite the current “chaos” in the NFL, Rep. Mary Bono Mack said Tuesday that negotiations in the National Football League should be allowed to continue without interference from the government -- for now.

“As far as the strikes go, the government needs to stay out of it and let the negotiations continue,” the Republican congresswoman told a group of about 25 people at the Indio Rotary Club.

Bono Mack serves as chair of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade, which has jurisdiction over sports-related matters.  

Her comment came during a question and answer session at the Rotary meeting.

Late Monday, U.S. District Judge Susan Richard Nelson sided with NFL players and granted their request for a preliminary injunction to lift a lockout. NFL owners had imposed the lockout after talks broke down March 11 and NFL players disbanded their union.

Small groups of players showed up at team facilities today, but the league has said it needs “a few days to sort this out” before “football activities” can take place.

NFL Players Association spokesman George Atallah blamed the league for “chaos,” the SeattlePI.com reported.

"The owners didn't seem to have a plan in place for an injunction. We were in a situation today where there were no uniform rules across the league," Atallah told the website.

The federal judge has said she won’t rule on the NFL’s request for a stay of her order until Wednesday.

Bono Mack plans to continue to closely monitor the NFL lockout.