Tom Brady Make Donald Drumpf Again
Tom Brady's official retirement message on Tuesday has, predictably, been met with a variety of takes. These takes tend to fall into 4 categories:
"What a bang-up player! I love Tom Brady!"
"I hate Boston sports teams! I hate Tom Brady!"
"What a cheater! I hate Tom Brady!"
"Expert riddance to that MAGA-hat-wearing symbol of white oppression. I really hate Tom Brady!"
The campsite yous fall into may be inadvertently personally revealing; it's a fun little Sorting Lid for our sporting era.
The camp you fall into may be inadvertently personally revealing; it's a fun little Sorting Hat for our sporting era. Conspicuously, Brady is a cultural lightning rod, only as his legendary career ends, I feel obliged to point out one criticism that should be corrected. Not only was Brady not any kind of fascist, I'1000 pretty sure he was never really on board with Donald Trump in the offset place.
Nonetheless, the "MAGA-hat-loving Brady" legend has been such a large part of his narrative for more than a half-decade that it has taken on a life of its ain; I've really heard him chosen "this generation'southward Lindbergh."
Maybe you hate Brady and mayhap yous don't, just as the news cycle begins litigating and relitigating Brady's larger-than-life legacy, allow'southward be articulate about what he did — and what he didn't — say or exercise. It's unavoidable that 1 of the greatest Due north American athletes ever be mythologized, but at least permit united states mythologize based on fact, non fiction.
Brady didn't put the hat in his locker
If you know ane thing nearly Brady'southward alleged politics, it probably ties back to that famous picture of Brady with the "Make America Swell Again" lid in his locker way back in September 2015. Brady had said he was "friends" with Trump and that "he's a hell of a lot of fun to play golf with."
But it'due south worth noting that Brady isn't the ane who put the lid in his locker: That happened via Patriots possessor Robert Kraft — Brady's dominate, such as information technology was — who was such a longtime Trump friend and supporter that he may take asked Trump to endeavor to intervene during the team's Spygate scandal.
Remember, likewise, that this was September 2015: Brady, like most of America then, surely didn't take Trump's candidacy particularly seriously. (Be honest, you didn't either.) Brady was explicit in an interview that week that he was not expressing support for Trump for president and that the hat should not be seen every bit an endorsement of that. (He later said, "Political back up is a lot different than the support of a friend.")
The hat was never seen again, and Brady never said a word in support of Trump once again afterwards. Indeed, the only thing he ever said about Trump politically was to say he "disagreed" with him when Trump said protesting athletes should be "dragged off the field."
Likewise Kraft, Patriots coach Pecker Belichick was a existent Trump supporter. On the eve of the ballot in 2016, Trump read from a letter Belichick had sent him — a alphabetic character that, despite a cadency that sounded suspiciously like Trump'southward, Belichick confirmed sending. ESPN writer Seth Wickersham later on revealed that some on the team were so upset by Belichick's Trump support that they nearly boycotted exercise. But none of them always said a word about Brady.
Brady never went to the White House when Trump was there
Brady did non visit the White Firm with the Patriots when the team celebrated with President Barack Obama in 2015. Merely he also did non join when the team visited the White Business firm during the Trump administration.
Brady's career has spanned many different presidents, and he did visit two of them: President George W. Bush in 2004 and 2005 and President Joe Biden last year. During his visit with the latter, Brady joked, "Non a lot of people think that nosotros could take won. In fact, I think about forty percent of people still don't remember we won. You empathize that, Mr. President?" It was widely considered a swipe at Trump.
Brady'due south married woman has been less attentive
Brady has never explicitly said what he thought of Trump politically, but his wife, Gisele Bundchen, sure has. When, on the eve of the 2016 ballot, someone asked her on Instagram if she and Brady were voting for Trump, she gave an emphatic "No!"
Also, on the twenty-four hour period when Brady's teammates were visiting the Trump White Business firm — and her husband was non — she tweeted a link to the climate change protest specifically slated for Trump's 100th day in office. She fifty-fifty reportedly told Brady to stop talking about politics at all, lest there exist whatever confusion, advice he clearly followed.
Ultimately, Brady is dissimilar almost athletes — and Americans. But where he is very much like nearly athletes, and most Americans, is in his apparent want non to talk about politics — at all. Is Tom Brady a Republican? A Democrat? A Proud Male child? A Bernie Bro? While Brady said years agone that he did enjoy "following" politics, he has, like many celebrities, generally just supported blandly safe causes and charities.
This doesn't make him brave, and in that location'south certainly a instance to exist fabricated that he should wield his considerable power and influence differently. Brady has mostly ignored the trend of the athlete-activist, typified by stars like LeBron James or Megan Rapinoe. Do many of us wish Brady had spoken up against Trump? Of course. Only the fact that he didn't makes him exactly like, oh, every other Super Bowl quarterback of the terminal twenty years. (Well, almost every 1.)
It is possible that Brady is secretly a Gettr user and a heavy financial supporter of Trump (though no donations have ever been given to a Trump campaign in his name), and he's but been incredibly stealth about it. But it'south more likely that Trump was but a golfing buddy who all of a sudden ran for president.
So you lot can hate Tom Brady all you want. There are plenty of legitimate reasons to do then (I didn't even impact his wellness stuff or his back up of Antonio Brown). But him being a Trump supporter isn't one of them. Pitiful.
Related:
- From Tom Brady and the NFL to the WNBA and NASCAR, Trump notwithstanding haunts pro sports
- Carl Nassib, the start openly gay active NFL player, could be turning point for male sports
- Colin Kaepernick'south NFL slavery comments on Netflix made waves. Good.
Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/tom-brady-donald-trump-retiring-nfl-great-s-maga-myth-ncna1288381
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