Former NFL player Brett Favre attends day 3 of SiriusXM At Super Bowl LVI on February 11, 2022, in Los Angeles, California. | Source: Cindy Ord / Getty
It’s been just over a year since former NFL quarterback Brett Favre was exposed in text messages that, if one didn’t know any better, heavily suggest former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant used at least $5 million of the state’s welfare funds to help pay for a volleyball stadium for the university Favre’s daughter attends. Now, Favre is finally set to give sworn testimony about the scandal later this month.
According to the Mississippi Free Press, attorneys for the Mississippi Department of Human Services filed the deposition notice on Monday. The filing states that Jones Walker LLP “will take the deposition of Brett Lorenzo Favre in accordance with the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure beginning on Thursday, October 26, 2023, beginning at 9:00 a.m. at Hotel Indigo” in Hattiesburg, Miss., where he lives, and that it will continue “from day to day until completed.”
MORE: What Brett Favre’s Welfare Scandal Means For Black People In Mississippi
As the Free Press noted, it’s unclear if Favre’s testimony will ever be made public because the State moved for the court to adopt a protective order that would make all deposition testimony “Confidential or Highly Confidential,” which is a shame because the public wants and needs to know if Favre realized he was being an entire welfare queen on behalf of his daughter and her school.
As we previously reported, Favre vehemently denies he knew anything about where the money came from. He also waited until nearly a month after the allegations first came to light to speak up. And while he hasn’t been officially charged with a crime on the state or federal level, many people think he looks guilty, and there’s at least one text exchange he might have a difficult time explaining if he’s going to stick to the claim that he had no idea his volleyball stadium money was stolen from the state’s poorest and most vulnerable stadium.
“If you were to pay me is there any way the media can find out where it came from and how much?” Favre asked Nancy New, the nonprofit leader who pleaded guilty last year to to state charges of misusing public money. New responded saying, “No, we never had that information publicized.”
It’s just really hard to imagine what Favre was so afraid of if he had no idea where the money came from, which makes it really hard to believe he’s not going to perjure himself if he continues playing dumb.
From the Free Press:
Favre has denied knowing the money came from welfare funds, and the text messages do not show anyone directly telling him TANF money was involved. The quarterback also sought help from former Gov. Phil Bryant, but the former governor has denied having any role in directing welfare funds to Favre’s projects. Texts Bryant released earlier this year show that Favre and his partner in the drug company, Prevacus, also sought help from then-President Donald Trump.
Text messages the Mississippi Free Press uncovered through a public records request last year show Favre also sought help to get legislative funds for the volleyball project from current Gov. Tate Reeves in early 2020, but there is no evidence that Reeves assisted him. However, text messages Reeves’ office released last month do show that his brother, Todd Reeves, assisted Favre’s efforts to repay the State $500,000 in 2020.
Look, all I’m going to point out is that there are a lot of high-profile Republican names being tossed around in this case considering the fact that it’s that party of old white men screaming at everyone else to stop looking for handouts and get off welfare.
However this turns out, hopefully, it will teach people like Favre to pull themselves up by their bootstraps and pay for their own stadiums.
SEE ALSO:
Mississippi Welfare Scandal Sparks Calls For Brett Favre To Be Kicked Out Of Football Hall Of Fame
Brett Favre Loses Radio Shows Amid Widening Mississippi Welfare Fraud Scandal
