Patriots quarterback Tom Brady appeared for his regular interview on Dennis & Callahan this morning, and actually had to face a question about Donald Trump, a toupee someone found in a garbage can and stapled to a sweet potato. Brady did a good job of not providing an actual answer. When one of the show’s hosts asked point-blank if Brady supported Trump for president in 2016, the QB called him a “good friend.”
“I support all my friends,” Brady said.
Listen here. It starts about 13 minutes into the segment:
KIRK MINIHANE: So last week, it happened once again, there’s another debate tonight. So, just to be clear, and I’m not looking to collect any money from Deadspin. I’m not even asking the question. No, but Donald Trump said last week that Tom goes around telling everyone how great he is. He’s using Tom as sort of, to move his popularity forward in Massachusetts. That’s what the story said. So, I’ll ask it one more time, just so it’s clear, just for the record. Are you supporting Donald J. Trump for president in 2016?
TOM BRADY: Can I just stay out of this debate? Donald, he’s a good friend of mine. I’ve known him for a long time. I support all my friends. That’s what I have to say. He’s a good friend of mine. He’s always been so supportive of me, for the last 15 years, since I judged a beauty pageant for him, which was one of the very first things that I did that thought was really cool. That came along with winning the Super Bowl. He’s always invited me to play golf. I’ve always enjoyed his company. I support all my friends in everything they do. I think it’s pretty remarkable what he’s achieved in his life. I mean, going from business, kind of an incredible businessman and then a TV star, and then getting into politics. It’s a pretty different career path. I think that is pretty remarkable.
GARY TANGUAY: Tom, I want to save you here. When you say you support all your friends, that can be interpreted as you are supporting Donald Trump over Ted Cruz, over Hillary Clinton—
CALLAHAN: How do you know he’s not friends with Ted Cruz?
TANGUAY: Well, I don’t know, I’m trying to clear the air.
CALLAHAN: Do you have any other friends in the field?
BRADY: This is really important to you guys, huh?
TANGUAY: Well, no, but you’re being misquoted. That’s how people will run with that.
The hosts asked Brady if he still has Trump’s hat in his locker; Brady said he does. The show then switched topics without anyone asking if Brady, who supports his friend, has any thoughts on Trump’s stated desire to ban Muslims from the United States.
No one thinks Brady has any depth of political knowledge or deep insights to offer—he’s essentially a show dog when not playing football—but this is a very simple situation. Brady is friends with Trump and stated today that he supports his friend in everything he does; this presumably includes Trump stating publicly and clearly that he would like to ban Muslims from the United States. If this isn’t what he means, he should say as much. Perhaps an NFL reporter could ask him.
Correction (2:19 p.m.): The transcription in this post attributed quotes to John Dennis and Gerry Callahan, when the radio booth actually included Kirk Minihane, Callahan, and Gary Tanguay. The post has been corrected.
[WEEI]
Photo: AP
Contact the author at samer@deadspin.com.