Donald Trump, who somehow has made it into the finals to be our next president, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the outspoken and spunky United States Supreme Court justice, have engaged in a very entertaining pissing match the last few days.
Can Tom Brady, the star of the Deflategate sitcom, get sprayed in the crossfire?
Brady is The Donald’s favorite quarterback and last season Brady displayed a Trump campaign “Make America Great Again” cap in his Patriots locker. Ginsburg, meanwhile, is expected to issue the final ruling whether Brady will miss the first four games of the 2016 season or whether his suspension will be deferred pending appeal.
Brady and Trump are not much more than golfing buddies, although the way Trump portrays it, he just about watches tape with TB 12. They are so close that Brady will not even be attending the Republican Convention next week in Cleveland. Then again, he didn’t attend the Pats’ White House visit last year.
So, how has Brady-Ginsburg-Trump become a political love-hate triangle built for reality TV?
As anticipated, the full 13-member Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York ruled Wednesday to deny Brady’s request for a rehearing of the court’s three-member panel’s decision in April to confirm Roger Goodell’s powers and reinstate Brady’s four-game suspension, which is now scheduled to be served at the beginning of the 2016 season.
Brady’s next step is to ask the Second Circuit, within the next seven days, for a stay as he appeals to the Supreme Court to hear the case. The Second Circuit is expected to deny that request by mid-August.
The four-time Super Bowl winner will not be out of options and this is where it gets really interesting.
His last Hail Mary will be to ask the Supreme Court to issue a stay that will cover the 90 days he has to file a request for the most powerful court in the land to hear the case. The stay, if granted, will also cover the period of time until the Supreme Court decides whether to hear the case, which likely won’t be until next spring. Because the season opens Sept. 11, there is a sense of urgency. Brady is free to participate in training camp and preseason games.
The Supreme Court would be expected to makes its ruling on the stay very quickly.
The circuit justice from the Supreme Court who is assigned to rule on matters coming from the Second Circuit is none other than Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She is a liberal judge and tends to side with labor. That’s great news for Brady. This case is no longer about deflated footballs. It’s whether Goodell abused his CBA powers.
The bad news is Trump keeps boasting about his bromance with Brady. That clearly should not influence the ruling of Ginsburg, a woman of high integrity. If Ginsburg grants the stay, then Brady is clear for the 2016 season. If not, then he will miss games against the Cardinals, Dolphins, Texans and Bills.
“I see Brady playing weeks one through four,” said noted sports legal expert Daniel Wallach. “With Justice Ginsburg the one deciding, things look pretty good for Brady. It’s an easy decision for Justice Ginsburg to stay the suspension.”
Even if the Supreme Court later decides not to hear the case, he will be able to serve the four games in 2017. But if she denies the stay and Brady eventually wins, “he can never recover games that he loses,” Wallach said.
It’s unlikely the Supreme Court will decide whether to take the case before the end of the 2016 season.
Then there’s the Trump factor.
What about Ginsburg saying, “I can’t imagine what this place could be — I can’t imagine what the country would be — with Donald Trump as our president. She even brought up a comment from her late husband, “Now it’s time to move to New Zealand.”
Trump fired back at the 83-year-old Ginsburg on Twitter, of course, with typical class. “Justice Ginsburg of the U.S. Supreme Court has embarrassed all by making very dumb political statements about me. Her mind is shot — resign.”
The Supreme Court receives thousands of requests every year to hear cases. They accept less than 1%, about 100 per year, which makes Deflategate a long shot to find its way into the courtroom in Washington. But hiring respected attorney Ted Olson, who has argued many cases before the Supreme Court, including representing George W. Bush in the ruling that eventually made him president over Al Gore, could help Brady get the case heard.
Can Trump’s friendship with Brady impact Ginsburg?
“This is not the same as Trump appearing before Justice Ginsburg,” Wallach said. “She is not going to recuse herself. The requirement for recusal is a higher threshold — more than being a Trump friend. But it is an interesting dynamic. This will be the first instance in which a potential Trump-related matter is presented to Justice Ginsburg following her remarks. But it’s seven rings removed from Trump. Much is made of the friendship, but it’s probably no more than a public friendship.”
Brady and Trump became friends after Trump asked him to judge a beauty contest following one of his Super Bowl victories. “Can I just stay out of this debate,” Brady said last season. “Donald is a good friend of mine. I have known him for a long time. I support all my friends. That is what I have to say.”
The best thing for Brady to do to ensure he’s in Ginburg’s good graces so he can stay on the field in 2016? Build a wall between him and Trump. Even offer to pay for it.
