Brady on Pats skipping White House: 'that's their choice'

BOSTON — Tom Brady doesn't seem bothered by his teammates' plans to skip the team's visit to the White House.

"That's their choice," Brady told NBC's ProFootballTalk Live Tuesday morning.

At least five Patriots players have said they plan to skip the visit due to their views on President Donald Trump.

Devin McCourty told Time Magazine he doesn't "feel welcome" at the White House.

“Everybody has their own choice,” Brady told PFT Live. “There’s certain years, like a couple years ago, I wanted to go and didn’t get the opportunity based on the schedule — 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.”

Brady couldn't attend the Patriots' lone White House visit during President Barack Obama's terms, but did visit the White House three times during George W. Bush's terms. He also visited the White House during Bill Clinton's presidency when Michigan won the BCS national championship.

“It really is a great experience,” Brady said. “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.”

Tom Brady is a friend of President Donald Trump, but has not publicly backed the president or his policies. His wife, supermodel Gisele Bündchen, has been an outspoken opponent of Trump and his immigration order.

Cox Media Group