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The New England Patriots won Super Bowl 51, now they’re going to be the first team to visit the White House with Donald Trump as the president. It’s no secret that Trump is not well liked; six Patriots so far have said they will not attend the White Hosue trip. Quarterback Tom Brady is good friends with Trump and was asked how he feels about his teammates foregoing the visit.
Appearing on “PFT Live” on Tuesday morning, Brady said players have to make their “own choice” about whether to make the trip to Washington, D.C.
“There’s certain years, like a couple years ago, I wanted to go and didn’t get the opportunity based on the schedule,” Brady said.” “We didn’t get told until I think like 10 days before we were going, and at that point I had something I’d been planning for months and couldn’t get there.”
The Patriots quarterback visited the White House after Super Bowl victories in 2002, 2004 and 2005 seasons — when George W. Bush was president — as well as after Michigan’s college football national title in 1997. The only time Brady did not attend, was 2015 when Barack Obama was the president. Brady said he had a family commitment, but according to ESPN.com, the Patriots quarterback was actually at Gillette Stadium getting some stretching in while the rest of the team was visiting with Obama.
“It really is a great experience,” Brady told continued. “Putting politics aside, it never was a political thing. At least, it never was to me. It meant you won a championship and you got to experience something cool with your team, with your teammates. Everyone has their own choice. It’s an offseason. These days are valuable for everybody. You only get so much time with your family and friends, and if people don’t want to go they don’t want to go, and that’s their choice.”
Patriots owner, Robert Kraft is also a longtime friend and supporter of Trump, but he’s okay with some of his players choosing not to attend the White House trip. He told the “Today” show on Monday that he didn’t think it was notable that some players wouldn’t go to the White House.
“This is America; we’re all free to do whatever’s best for us, and we’re just privileged to be in a position to be going,” Kraft said.
Tight end Martellus Bennett was the first to reveal he’s not attending and did so during his press conference after the Super Bowl. “It is what it is,” he said. “People know how I feel about it. Just follow me on Twitter.”
Pro Bowl linebacker Dont’a Hightower told ESPN, “Been there, done that,” referring to his White House visit with the championship Alabama team.
Defensive tackle Alan Branch told Sirius XM Radio that he’s going to spend time with family, saying, “I’m going to just leave it at that.”
Running back LeGarrette Blount revealed his decision on Fox Sports in a radio interview on “The Rich Eisen Show” saying, “I just don’t feel welcome in that house.”
Defensive end Chris Long posted on Twitter that he “planned on skipping” in response to a column in The Daily News that urged him to skip.
Pro Bowl safety Devin McCourty, a team captain, told Time magazine: “Basic reason for me is I don’t feel accepted in the White House. With the president having so many strong opinions and prejudices, I believe certain people might feel accepted there while others won’t.”
