Old Audio Surfaces of Mr. Kraft Calling Trump's Position on the Anthem Issue 'Divisive and Horrible'

TMZ - New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft called out Donald Trump as "divisive and horrible" when talking about NFL kneelers at the '17 NFL summit ... and TMZ Sports has the audio.

It all went down in October 2017 -- roughly 1 month after President Trump called for NFL teams to fire any "son of a bitch" who doesn't stand for the national anthem.

The owners felt the league was taking a serious PR hit and called for owners, players and league execs to come together to talk about possible solutions.

That's when Kraft addressed the room ... and explained how POTUS would twist whatever plan they came up with to advance his own agenda.

"I must tell you, I think these dialogues are great," Kraft said. "But, the elephant in the room now in my opinion, is this kneeling, which every player has a right to do if they feel it's right."

"The problem we have is, we have a President that will use that as fodder to do his mission that I don’t feel is in the best interest of the matter. It's divisive and it's horrible. And, it’s actually the opposite of what you all are trying to do."

Kraft explains there is 40% of the country that will crap all over any possible plan just because they'll side with Trump no matter what. ...

Kraft went on FOX News in February to praise POTUS ... saying, "[Trump is] working very hard to serve the best interest of the country." 

And that, my fellow Americans, is how democracy is supposed to work in a free society. He calls you a "son of a bitch." You call his policy "divisive and horrible." And the next thing you know, you're breaking biscuits together over a bucket of The Colonel and you're handing him a 45 jersey with his name on the back. No hard feelings. It's just politics. 

That's the way the Founding Fathers drew it up. Granted, their gameplan was only good for the first 15 plays they scripted. The decision to kick that can of human beings owning other human beings down the road was not only a terrible deal for the people who suffered, it put a ticking time bomb in the Constitution that exploded in less than four score and seven years. But the idea to let everyone - OK, to let white, male landowners and later everyone else - say whatever the fuck they want to each other and still be pals afterwards was a pretty solid one. 

In what was basically the first presidential campaign, after Washington left office, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson got right down to mud wrestling in the cesspool. An Adams supporter said Jefferson's America will be a place where “murder, robbery, rape, adultery and incest will openly be taught and practiced.” And one of Jefferson's friends shot back that Adams a "repulsive pedant"  who “behaved neither like a man nor like a woman but instead possessed a hideous hermaphroditical character." Which was the "son of a bitch" and "divisive and horrible" for a more literate world. And those two ended up being pen pals in their later years, actually dying on the same day, July 4, 1826, exactly 50 years to the day they signed the Declaration of Independence. In fact, Adams dying words were "Jefferson lives." 

So what's a little name-calling between Mr. Kraft, the President of the United States and NFL players? In the grand scheme of things, it's tiny little fingerling potatoes. And it's not going to stop the man from going on Fox to praise his old golfing buddy or keep the Patriots from visiting the White House after they win the next Super Bowl. 

It would just be nice if, in these polarized times in which we find ourselves, everyone could learn a lesson from these men. Men of such power and influence that one has the nuclear codes at his disposal and the other has Tom Brady. But they're able to settle their differences civilly and remain friends. Keep that in mind this Thanksgiving as you get together with your uncle who wants to talk about how libs are ruining the country and your cousin in college who burns flags. Instead of losing relationships over it, remember that two men who control their own air forces can stay on good terms and so can you.