WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Donald Trump spoke for a few minutes before being presented a No. 45 jersey by Patriots owner Robert Kraft and coach Bill Belichick at Wednesday's ceremony here celebrating the Super Bowl LI champions. During his spiel he mentioned a number of players, including Julian Edelman, Malcolm Mitchell, Marcus Cannon, Joe Cardona, Matthew Slater, Nate Ebner and Trey Flowers.
One name was conspiculously abest from his remarks: Tom Brady.
Brady did not make the trip to the White House, telling ESPN's Mike Reiss that he had some personal family matters to attend to. He was one of 34 players invited that was not present.
It came as some surprise, though, that Trump did not take the opportunity to shed light on his long-time relationship with Brady. It was a name he had no trouble mentioning during his campaign for president, and one he highlighted during a trip to New Hampshire just before the election.
Trump seemed more surprised by receiver Danny Amendola's absence than Brady's, since Amendola's name was not scrubbed from the notes on the presidential podium. During Trump's speech, Amendola was among the first names mentioned. Trump then turned to the team behind him and asked Amendola to identify himself. He wasn't present.