After winning the 1991 NBA finals, Michael Jordan turned down an invitation from George H.W. Bush and played golf instead. “I didn’t want to go. I had something else to do,” he told Playboy (via Ball Is Life), adding that the other Bulls were aware he wasn’t attending.
The legendary basketball star wasn’t openly critical of Bush or the Republican party. In fact, when he was asked to endorse a Democratic candidate in 1990 and declined, Jordan explained his thought process with a quip: “Republicans buy shoes, too.” In an ESPN documentary, years later, he explained that he never had time for activism or politics in the NBA. “I was focused on my craft,” Jordan added. “Was that selfish? Probably. But that was my energy. That’s where my energy was.” The player insisted that he didn’t make political statements in those days.
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Another Bull had a different explanation for Jordan missing the White House meeting, however. Craig Hodges, who had played with Jordan in the 1991 and 1992 finals, pointed out that he went on to play golf with Democrat president Bill Clinton. “You know, MJ is not publicly political but he can handle his affairs,” he told Respect magazine in 2017. “When he didn’t come to the White House, it was a statement.” Hodges explained that Jordan wasn’t reprimanded by sponsors because he was such a big name at the time. “But I understood where he was coming from and that Bush wasn’t his homie.”
