Tom Brady will not speak at Republican convention for buddy Trump: Report

Despite a tease from the presumptive Republican nominee last month, Tom Brady will NOT be speaking at the party’s convention in Cleveland later this month, an ESPN reporter tweeted.

Despite speculation to contrary, Pats QB Tom Brady will not be attending Republican National Convention in Cleveland this month, per source.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 5, 2016

Donald Trump told a crowd in Richmond, Virginia in June that he wanted to bring sports luminaries like quarterbacks Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisberger, Brian France of Nascar and Dana White of Ultimate Fighting Championship to the stage.

“Our country needs to see winners,” Trump told the crowd, according to the New York Times. “We don’t see winners anymore. We have a bunch of clowns running this country. We have people who don’t know what the hell they’re doing running our country.”

And it’s not just Brady — convention organizers are having problems with finding speakers in general this year, largely due to the controversies surrounding Trump’s campaign, Politico reported last week.

According to that report:

New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte “is not attending the convention,” said a spokeswoman. Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner “is not attending the convention,” his office said. A spokesman for South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham: “He announced back in May he’s not attending.” For South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley: “The governor has not been asked to speak at the convention and has no plans to.” Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn: “There are no plans for him to speak.”

…

New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, a rising star who helped to write the GOP platform at the 2012 convention, “will be in her district working for her constituents and not attending the convention,” said a spokesman. Oklahoma Rep. Steve Russell, a former Army lieutenant colonel who helped capture Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, “has no plans to be a speaker at the convention,” said his office. North Carolina Rep. Richard Hudson, who’s frequently talked about as a potential future statewide candidate, “won’t be at the convention.” Mia Love, the charismatic Utah rep seen by many as the GOP’s future, is skipping Cleveland for a trip to Israel. “I don’t see any upsides to it,” Love told a reporter on Friday. “I don’t see how this benefits the state.”

Hopefully they’ll have some speakers ready by the time the convention starts the week of July 18.