Shockingly, a Clinton-appointee.

Via WaPo:

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office isn’t the only federal authority that has taken a stance against the name of the Washington Redskins.

A federal judge in Maryland issued a ruling last week that purposely did not contain the team’s name, which has been described as an offensive slur against Native Americans.

U.S. District Judge Peter J. Messitte, who is presiding over the “bounty” case former New York Giants linebacker Barrett Green launched against the Redskins, issued a 21-page ruling with this footnote on the first page: “Pro Football’s team is popularly known as the Washington ‘Redskins,’ but the Court will refrain from using the team name unless reference is made to a direct quote where the name appears.” Instead, he wrote, the team will be referred to as “the Washington Team.”

The note comes months after Messitte — who was born in D.C. and attended Bethesda-Chevy Chase high school — ordered attorneys in the case not to use the team’s name in his courtroom, according to one of the lawyers.

Mesitte’s ruling came in response to request by the Redskins to dismiss the lawsuit. The Clinton-era appointee dismissed some of Green’s claims, but not all of them. Green has accused former Washington Redskins tight end Robert Royal of intentionally injuring his knee during a 2004 game as part of a bounty program.