Congressional Hearing on Steroids, HGH, and PEDs

[Appa23]

Is anyone watching it?

WOW!!!!

I would not put any money on Clemens being a 1st ballot Hall of Famer. In a battle of credibility with McNamee, Clemens is losing -- BIG! I hope during the break, someone tells Clemens that appearing so angry is not a good thing in the "court of public opinion." One or two times, and we gt that you are upset that your good name is being dragged through the mud. You do it consistently, and we know that it is an act.

Other losers from the morning portion:

- Rusty Hardin and Lanny ???? (Clemen's attorneys). On the bright side for Clemens, he has video tape of what a lousy job that these two did in preparing and handling the congressional testimony, in case he wants to sue for malpractice. <g> Clemens appeared unprepared to answer the key questions in dispute, when he knew that they were going to be asked. His credibility is not helped when it appears clear that his attorneys tried to hide evidence and witnesses, including "tampering" with his former nany as a witness, contrary to the committee's instructions. Also, in case Lanny missed that day in law school, the time to coach your client on exactly what to say is prior to the hearing or trial, not during it. It is not a very good ventriloquist act if I can see his lips move while Clemens is answering a tough question. Nothing says, "I have been lying and can not truthfully answer your questions" like a lawyer leaning up to the witness table, telling his client what to say, his client repeating part of it, and then being re-told the "story" so that he can get the rest "right".

- Rep. Dan Burton (IN.). He came off as a raving lunatic and Clemens groupie. I sure hope this guy is not an attorney, b/c he had the pwrse line of questioning.

- Rep. William Clay (MO.) I was shocked that he did not ask Clemens for an autograph during his questioning (but he likely already got one last week).


Big Winners:

- The other Representative from Indiana. He had the best five minutes of anyone, without really asking a question. He showed why Congress was holding this hearing, linking drug abuse with performance-enhancign drugs and influence upon kids and society. Plus, he laid out the perfect explanation for McNamee on why it took time for the whole story to come out, including prior inconsistent statements.

- Representative from D.C. (Watson?). I hope that Rep. Burton was watching how you call someone a liar without acting like the Russian prosecutor from Nuremburg. "I am sure that you will be going to heaven." Priceless. [Said in reference to her confronting Clemens with his story about all of the terrible things that McNamee had done in the past, especially to Clemens and his family, in contrast to Clemens continuing to employ McNamee, and Clemens only argument essentially being "I'm just a super nice, forgiving guy."]

-Chairman Waxman. He loses some points for those enormous ears (very distracting), but I was impressed with how he handled things overall. I also would have told Rusty Hardin very quickly to sit down and shut up with all of that phony "righteous indignation" when they keep getting scolded for being less than forthright with evidence and witnesses.

[earendel]

Is anyone watching it?

WOW!!!!

I would not put any money on Clemens being a 1st ballot Hall of Famer. In a battle of credibility with McNamee, Clemens is losing -- BIG! I hope during the break, someone tells Clemens that appearing so angry is not a good thing in the "court of public opinion." One or two times, and we gt that you are upset that your good name is being dragged through the mud. You do it consistently, and we know that it is an act.

So what's the likelihood that both Clemens and McNamee are telling the truth - McNamee did inject Clemens with steroids and HGH but Clemens didn't know that's what was in the syringes?

[wbtravis007]

From the parts that I've seen or heard, just about all (if not all) of the Republicans are fighting to prop Clemens up, and almost all (if not all) of the Dems are attacking him.

I swannee!

[VAdame]

PEDs

Peds? Peds are a good thing!

Who wants to try on shoes that have had other peoples' dirty bare feet in 'em??

[nitrah55]

Is anyone watching it?

WOW!!!!

I would not put any money on Clemens being a 1st ballot Hall of Famer. In a battle of credibility with McNamee, Clemens is losing -- BIG! I hope during the break, someone tells Clemens that appearing so angry is not a good thing in the "court of public opinion." One or two times, and we gt that you are upset that your good name is being dragged through the mud. You do it consistently, and we know that it is an act.

So what's the likelihood that both Clemens and McNamee are telling the truth - McNamee did inject Clemens with steroids and HGH but Clemens didn't know that's what was in the syringes?

Zip. Andy Petitte has sworn to the fact that Clemens told him about getting HGH in 1999 or 2000, and then that Clemens, in 2003, denied that he told him that, saying that he was talking about his wife getting injections.

There are holes in Clemens's story that a truck would go through easily:

- He swore that in 2003, he didn't know "anything" about HGH, but when his wife had a bad reaction to a shot, he didn't call a doctor, because he didn't think it was "serious." How would he know it wasn't serious, if he knew nothing about HGH?

- He told Mike Wallace he didn't speak to the Mitchell investigators because his lawyer told him not to. He told the committee he didn't speak to the Mitchell investigators because he never knew they wanted to speak to him.

- Clemens says he's such good pals with Petitte that he would talk to him immediately if he heard that Petitte was using HGH. So why didn't he call Petitte when the Mitchell report came out?

- And, why did he locate and talk to his ex-nanny before giving the committee her name and address, which they had asked for?

McNamee's a creep, but his story holds up.

[Jeemie]

From the parts that I've seen or heard, just about all (if not all) of the Republicans are fighting to prop Clemens up, and almost all (if not all) of the Dems are attacking him.

I swannee!

I noticed that too.

Clemens IS a Republican, you know!

Which was the idiot that asked which uniform Clemens would wear to his HoF induction? Was that Burton? I only heard snippets on the radio- that was one of them.

If this was a court case, what Clemens did last with the autographs, etc. would be called "jury-tampering".

[Appa23]

From the parts that I've seen or heard, just about all (if not all) of the Republicans are fighting to prop Clemens up, and almost all (if not all) of the Dems are attacking him.

I swannee!

I noticed that too.

Clemens IS a Republican, you know!

Which was the idiot that asked which uniform Clemens would wear to his HoF induction? Was that Burton? I only heard snippets on the radio- that was one of them.

If this was a court case, what Clemens did last with the autographs, etc. would be called "jury-tampering".

Clay asked about the uniform (allegedly because a Massachusetts colleague wanted to know).

[wbtravis007]

Clemens is a big fat liar.

And a wuss.

[T_Bone0806]

Aaachhhhh!! I'm a Yankee fan. I've never been a Clemens fan. I'm already sick of this crap.

I just want the cry of "play ball!" to begin again. I still love the game, despite what some do to drag it down.

[mrkelley23]

Dan Burton is a gross, incompetent, creep.

I was an intern in the Indiana Senate (insert your own joke here) when he was a state legislator. I heard from more than one reputable source that he would goose the pages (8th graders and younger!) when they would pose for pictures with him.

I wouldn't vote for him for garbage man.

[fantine33]

Could somebody explain briefly and without condescension (in other words, if you can't keep your "um"s and your s in your snood, just walk on by) what business it is of Congress in the first place? Aren't there more important things on which they could be spending their time and our taxes? Like finding out what brand Obama smokes and if Romney has a magic hat?

Same goes for football. Why does Roger Goodell, or anybody in the NFL, have to give Arlen Spector the time of day? Is he a rabid Jets fan or just being a nosy parker? Unless he's the owner of an NFL team, it's none of his beeswax.

Seriously, I don't get it.

[mrkelley23]

Could somebody explain briefly and without condescension (in other words, if you can't keep your "um"s and your s in your snood, just walk on by) what business it is of Congress in the first place? Aren't there more important things on which they could be spending their time and our taxes? Like finding out what brand Obama smokes and if Romney has a magic hat?

Same goes for football. Why does Roger Goodell, or anybody in the NFL, have to give Arlen Spector the time of day? Is he a rabid Jets fan or just being a nosy parker? Unless he's the owner of an NFL team, it's none of his beeswax.

Seriously, I don't get it.

In the case of football, I definitely agree with you.

In the case of MLB, I almost completely agree with you. The excuse Congress trots out is the same one they've always used: the Antitrust exemption that MLB enjoys. That's why they've never had to deal with an alternate pro league like both the NFL and the NBA have.

If they could somehow prove that the owners definitely knew and condoned illegal drug use, and therefore took away their exemption, I wouldn't cry.

But mostly, it's the same thing as the NFL -- the Congresscritters know the Peepul care a heckuva lot more about baseball and football than they do farm subsidies and realistic national security methods, to say nothing of energy policy.

[littlebeast13]

Why couldn't they have held these hearings on a Thursday like last time? I'd have loved to see Clemens make a fool out of himself....

lb13

[fantine33]

Thanks for the reply, mrk. I'll have to read it more carefully later and think about it. I just skimmed for now as I'm out the door and have doctor stuff tomorrow, but I wanted to acknowledge your help.

Goes to show what I know, I didn't think steroids and HGH were illegal, just banned within certain sports.

[littlebeast13]

Goes to show what I know, I didn't think steroids and HGH were illegal, just banned within certain sports.

The radio station we used to listen to at night back in 2003 ran a series of quack medicine paid ads on early Saturday and Sunday mornings. If it wasn't Dr. Michael Pinkus and his B1 Bomber or pressure point therapy, it was this other wierd guy selling the "fountain of youth". The fountain of youth was some weird thing I had never heard of back then called human growth hormone. All you had to do was call, and you'd get this mystery hormone that would make you feel younger again....

Don't know if anything's changed since then, but either HGH wasn't illegal back then, or that travelling medicine show was trying to pull a fast one....

lb13

[5LD]

I can't freaking believe congress is wasting tax payer money on this bull hockey. Who cares?!? If it was illegal in baseball, fine. Let the commissioner of baseball handle it.

I guess they think because of this description:

According to law human growth hormone can only be legally administered by a physician as part of the treatment of a disorder for which administration of HGH was indicated. Use of the drug for any other purpose is illegal.

they can meddle. But I sure as heck wish they were doing other hearings - like the head of Cigna answering questions as to their refusal of a life saving procedure forcing a family to fight for the surgery their loved one needed only to win the fight as the poor girl dies. I would much rather hear what those bloodthirsty insurance companies have to say about denying claims and procedures for insured and ill americans.

[Appa23]

Could somebody explain briefly and without condescension (in other words, if you can't keep your "um"s and your s in your snood, just walk on by) what business it is of Congress in the first place? Aren't there more important things on which they could be spending their time and our taxes? Like finding out what brand Obama smokes and if Romney has a magic hat?

Same goes for football. Why does Roger Goodell, or anybody in the NFL, have to give Arlen Spector the time of day? Is he a rabid Jets fan or just being a nosy parker? Unless he's the owner of an NFL team, it's none of his beeswax.

Seriously, I don't get it.

In the case of football, I definitely agree with you.

In the case of MLB, I almost completely agree with you. The excuse Congress trots out is the same one they've always used: the Antitrust exemption that MLB enjoys. That's why they've never had to deal with an alternate pro league like both the NFL and the NBA have.

If they could somehow prove that the owners definitely knew and condoned illegal drug use, and therefore took away their exemption, I wouldn't cry.

But mostly, it's the same thing as the NFL -- the Congresscritters know the Peepul care a heckuva lot more about baseball and football than they do farm subsidies and realistic national security methods, to say nothing of energy policy.

MrK hit on half of the baseball story. Congress also has linked these pro sports perforamcne enhancing drug issue with the larger national drug problems and drug policy.

I do agree that this hearing, which really seemed devoted to "proving" whether (or both) McNamee or Clemens were lying, went beyond the jurisdiction of this Congressional Committee.

As for the NFL, they have an antitrust exemption dealing with broadcast rights, such that the teams can pool together to sell rights to broadcast netowrks. Having an undefeated team could (possibly) help raise the price of future television contracts, so the league's actions to destroy evidence of further violations of "best team" in league might need to be investigated. When you add on the growing "evidence" or accusations that said team cheated to win Super Bowls, and there would be issues regarding the effects on broadcast contracts/rights.

[wbtravis007]

Could somebody explain briefly and without condescension (in other words, if you can't keep your "um"s and your s in your snood, just walk on by) what business it is of Congress in the first place? Aren't there more important things on which they could be spending their time and our taxes? Like finding out what brand Obama smokes and if Romney has a magic hat?

Same goes for football. Why does Roger Goodell, or anybody in the NFL, have to give Arlen Spector the time of day? Is he a rabid Jets fan or just being a nosy parker? Unless he's the owner of an NFL team, it's none of his beeswax.

Seriously, I don't get it.

I heard on the radio Wexler's opening statement, which confirmed what I had already thought. I'm sure that you coul find it on line.

This is a very limited inquiry. They haven't spent a lot of time on it, and this will be it. Here's the deal: George Mitchell's report -- (and, arguably, his reputation) -- was challenged a little too vociferously -- (and vehemently and vituperatively, too, damnit!) -- by the number one guy mentioned in the report. I'm sure that Mitchell appreciates very much that the guy making that challenge was put under oath.

That's about it.

The other hearings (a couple of years back or so) were meant to fire a warning shot over MLB, I think. Kind of justified on the basis that this stuff was getting to be too big of a deal, with kids getting involved and what not. The Mitchell Report was, more or less, the result.

Since they're not going to get bogged down on this, I don't object to what they've one.

I don't get Arlen's problem about the NFL, though.

[Larry Bud Selig]

I can't freaking believe congress is wasting tax payer money on this bull hockey. Who cares?!? If it was illegal in baseball, fine. Let the commissioner of baseball handle it.

With pleasure, ma'am. I am glad I'm not the only one who thinks Congress should not be meddling into the affairs of the fine empire... uh, pasttime I preside over.

I hereby announce that Roger Clemens is banned from baseball for life.... or until he decides he wants to pitch again, whichever comes first....

There, that settles things.

[NellyLunatic1980]

I can't freaking believe congress is wasting tax payer money on this bull hockey. Who cares?!?

Jack Cafferty agrees with you. He talked about it yesterday on "The Situation Room":

All eyes on Capitol Hill were trained on baseball great Roger Clemens today as he denied using steroids.

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, along with much of the national media, remained transfixed for hours while the award-winning pitcher insisted he never took steroids or human growth hormone.

If that’s true, it’s hard to explain an affidavit from Clemens’ former teammate and friend Andy Pettitte, who says Clemens admitted to him as long as 10 years ago that he used HGH. Also, Clemens’ former trainer Brian McNamee testified in those same hearings today that he injected the player 16 to 21 times with steroids and HGH between 1998 and 2001.

Let’s see, we have the subprime mess, the housing crisis, a possible recession, the war in Iraq, health care, Social Security, terrorism, and this is what takes up our time--worrying about whether Roger Clemens used steroids a decade ago?

It’s good to see we have our priorities in order. A daytime made-for-TV dog-and-pony show put on by a bunch of irrelevant old congresspeople so they can get their faces on television. It’s no wonder a guy like Barack Obama is gaining traction.

Man, I love Jack Cafferty.

[Bixby17]

My reaction was similar. The more I watched the hearings, the more I wanted to hit people in the face. Especially when they said that these hearings were for the children:

Steroid Hearing for the Children? Please Stop Me From Punching Someone in the Face

http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2008/02/ ... unching-s/

FanHouse wrote all about the hearing, but I figured it was worth writing something that tried to capture my visceral reaction to it. In part:

During the hearing, Rep Bruce Braley among others kept on reminding us that this is all about the children. For the children????? (Insert profanity here of your favorite sort). How about not saddling our children with a debt so large that the made up word ginormous is still too small sounding to describe it?

Here's a US National Debt clock website. It claims that as of the moment that I'm writing this, the US National Debt is $9,253,534.982,739.89. Here's a news report that says the President just recently submitted a budget for $3.1 trillion dollars.

With numbers like those, no wonder Congress, with few exceptions, has no problem spending money having staffers track down details about Roger Clemens' butt abscess or the Jose Canseco's party attendees.

Watching those hearings was like watching CNN showing the helicopter footage of Britney Spears drive off from her mental health facility. Nothing much good comes from it, but boy howdy people love to watch this stuff. Famous people doing stupid stuff--riveting TV.