After suffering over a year of attacks due to his support of President Donald Trump, Super Bowl champion New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is now bowing out of the team visit to the White House, citing family matters as the reason.
The five-time Super Bowl winner posted a message to social media saying that while he is “excited” for the team’s visit to the White House, he will be skipping the event.
“I am so happy and excited that our team is being honored at the White House today,” Brady wrote in his statement.
“Our team has accomplished something very special that we are all proud of and will be for years to come,” Brady continued. “Thank you to the President for hosting this honorary celebration and for supporting our team for as long as I can remember.”
“In light of some recent developments, I am unable to attend today’s ceremony, as I am attending to some personal family matters,” Brady explained.
“Hopefully, if we accomplish the goal of winning a championship in the future years, we will [be] back on the South Lawn again soon. Have a great day,” he concluded.
The sudden announcement comes as a shock to many who expected Brady to be one of the first in line during the White House visit. Throughout the past NFL season, Brady was dogged by sports reporters more interested in social justice than sports who demanded he distance himself from Donald Trump — though he refused to do so.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.