During the 50 years I lived in Cambridge and rooted for the Red Sox I attended nearly every opening day at Fenway Park. I often sat in the owner’s box, next to John Henry, who was a friend. He had been to my home to celebrate the victory of Barack Obama in 2008. He had invited me and my wife to join him on his boat and airplane for several trips in various parts of the world. He had gone so far as to appoint me honorary Attorney General of Red Sox Nation. I was invited by him into the locker room to celebrate the World Series victory. We were friends, I thought forever.
Then suddenly everything changed. I committed the cardinal sin of representing President Trump against his unconstitutional impeachment on the floor of the Senate, though I was a loyal Democrat who had voted for every Democratic presidential candidate since John Kennedy. But I do not choose my clients or constitutional causes based on party loyalty or affiliation. I choose them on the basis of the importance of the constitutional issue. I helped defend President Clinton when he was unconstitutionally impeached and would have offered to defend President Biden if he had been improperly impeached. I also represented Democratic Senators Ted Kennedy and Alan Cranston.
But that wasn’t enough to dissuade John and Linda Henry from ending our long friendship and canceling me. I am no longer welcome in the owner’s box at Fenway. Indeed John and his wife Linda haven’t spoken to me and my wife since the day I defended Donald Trump. I guess the constitution of Red Sox Nation doesn’t include the right to have a different opinion on legal issues.
I could of course anonymously pay for a seat on the green monster and root for the Sox, but I would feel unwelcome and uncomfortable knowing that the Henrys would not want me to be there.
I am sure many Red Sox players and fans would agree with my representation of President Trump. Even those who disagreed would not want me ejected from Red Sox Nation after a half-century of loyal support for Boston’s team. But Red Sox Nation is not a democracy. It is a tyranny whose actions are determined by only two people: John and Linda Henry.
I will continue to root for the Red Sox, and even occasionally attend a game if I am allowed into the hallowed grandstands of Fenway, but I will not feel welcome. Nor should Red Sox fans who do not agree with the Henrys’ high-handedness in canceling me and presumably others who don’t adhere to their political line.
The Red Sox are more enduring than their temporary owners, who seem to care more these days about British soccer than Boston baseball. Their attempt to punish me will not dissuade me from continuing to defend people with whom they disagree. That is the American way, that’s the Boston Red Sox way, it’s just not the Henrys’ way.
I could have accepted the undeserved punishment in silence, but I think I owe it to my fellow Red Sox fans to let them know the full truth about the Red Sox’s primary owners: they are intolerant and do not support the principles underlying our Constitution or the diverse values of the Red Sox fan base.
Moreover, this issue transcends the Red Sox and me. It reflects the broader intolerance so many on the left have displayed toward those who do anything that contradicts their political correctness. It also reflects the growing divisiveness on our culture, politics and personal relationships. This intolerance for political and constitutional differences is bad for our nation. I will continue to fight against it regardless of the personal costs. I hope other will join me and let John and Linda Henry know that they disagree with the cancellation of those who dissent from their political correctness. The Red Sox and baseball fans in general have a diverse political and ideological base that their owners should respect.
