There's No Way Bill Belichick Accepts a Presidential Medal of Freedom From Donald Trump, Right?
Donald Trump will be leaving the White House soon. The exact date is up in the air right now, but as long as he's there, it's business as usual, which means doing things like giving Bill Belichick a Medal of Freedom according to Politico. If Belichick agrees to this, he might as well retire.
It seems insane to think that Belichick would allow himself to be a prop after a failed coup and give Trump the distracting public relations event he desires, but Belichick, Patriots owner Robert Kraft, and former Pats quarterback Tom Brady have always been very friendly with Trump. Earlier this year Trump said that he would turn to Belichick if he was ever planning a military battle. Perhaps Belichick, who wrote Trump a very nice letter when he was just a presidential candidate, helped Trump accept the fact that he was banned from SnapFace and Instant Chat last week.
Seriously though, what are the odds this happens? Thursday, when Politico says this is planned, is a lifetime away. This just seems like a horrible idea even for Belichick, who has made it clear he does not care about the opinions of others. After the events of last week, how anyone could continue to align themselves with Trump, on the eve of another impeachment, just boggles the mind. Belichick is surely smart enough to avoid being used like this if he plans to return to New England and coach young football players next season.
Belichick and Kraft visited the White House in 2017 after a Super Bowl win, but somehow couldn't make time to do the same in 2019. Things have only deteriorated since then for both Trump and the Patriots. Even the PGA has run away from the president at this point.
There is nothing to gain from this for Belichick. Yet, if Trump had scheduled this over the summer, Belichick most definitely would have been there. He probably won't even get a chance to make a decision on this as other things might pop up that occupy Trump's precious time.
Should it actually happen and Belichick actually agrees to stand by his man, this will be the sixth consecutive Medal of Freedom Trump has given to someone from the world of sports. He walked out on Dan Gable's ceremony in December. A few days earlier he gave one to Lou Holtz. In July he gave one to runner Jim Ryun. Less than 24 hours after the insurrection, he was dutifully draping them around the necks of Gary Player and Annika Sorenstam.
In 2019 Trump gave medals to Mariano Rivera, Jerry West, Bob Cousy, Tiger Woods, Alan Page, Roger Staubach, and Babe Ruth. Oh, and Elvis. So this is a very serious honor that Belichick should probably cherish. I just can't believe he will.