Coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots will not accept a Presidential Medal of Freedom conferred by President Donald Trump, according to a Boston Globe report late Monday. Belichick, who in the past has described himself as friendly with Trump but nonpolitical, said in a statement cited by the Globe that a decision had been made not to “move forward” with the honor. “Above all,” Belichick said, according to the paper, “I am an American citizen with great reverence for our nation’s values, freedom and democracy.” Trump has in recent days conferred the honor on ultraloyal Republican lawmakers Devin Nunes of California and Jim Jordan of Ohio, as well as a number of golfers. Belichick, the only NFL coach to have won the Super Bowl six times, had faced some criticism over his prospective acceptance of a reward from a president whose final days in office have been marked by a failure to accept as legitimate his election loss, culminating in a violent siege of the U.S. Capitol by supporters. Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
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