Roger Clemens' Congressional Hearing Was Unfair And Here's The Quote Of The Day

Watching the congressional hearing of Roger Clemens Vs. Brian McNamee really drove me to dislike our government. I mean, where do they get these people from. Doesn't our government have enough already to take care of? As an aside, I noticed from the Clemens hearings that a lot of Congressmen are bitter, old men who almost all the time already have their minds made up before cases begin and when they question people, they are only looking for the answers they want to hear. If the Congressmen don't hear answers they want to hear, they either probe further or just randomly come out with their own point of view. Just because they have more power and a louder voice doesn't mean they are any more credible.

Well, my radical thinking was once again not far from the truth (and I don't mean to pat myself on the back).

In the Roger Clemens primary, the Republicans nominated the Rocket. The Democrats went with Brian McNamee.

"Of all the things to become partisan over," Rep. Elijah Cummings, a Maryland Democrat, said Thursday, "this was the wrong one."

Cummings was among those who strongly questioned Clemens' credibility in testimony involving the pitcher's former personal trainer, Brian McNamee, during Wednesday's 4½-hour hearing held by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Republicans, for the most part, saved their searing comments for McNamee, who was repeatedly called a "drug dealer" by Rep. Christopher Shays of Connecticut.

"I thought the tone of the hearing was a little askew," said Rep. Diane Watson, a California Democrat. "I told Mr. Clemens that I didn't think it was going to be a court trial or an inquisition, but I think some of the members did go out of their way to be accusatory without having all of the facts.

"It is hard for me to discern who was not telling the truth and who was. Both men denied the other one's claim. I saw the questioning kind of divided, with some on the Republican side calling Mr. McNamee a liar and some on the Democratic side really questioning Clemens, and so I don't think we got anywhere on that."

Theories abounded over why the sides couldn't see eye to eye.

Richard Emery, one of McNamee's lawyers, said that some Republicans treated his client harshly because of Clemens' friendship with the Bush family. Emery predicted the pitcher will be pardoned by President Bush should Clemens be indicted or convicted of anything related to the hearing.

"It would be the easiest thing in the world for George W. Bush, given the corrupt proclivities of his administration, to say Roger Clemens is an American hero, Roger Clemens helped children," said Emery, an attorney who has worked for liberal causes. "It's my belief they have some reason to believe they can get a pardon."

Now, this site is primarily a sports site, not a political site. So, this is where I SHOULD stop, but there's more to say. However, you get what I'm saying? This case has gotten so absurd now even the President of the United States is thrown into the mix. Have people forgotten this is about baseball, not a political campaign? Anyway....

Not surprisingly, Clemens' camp -- and the GOP -- saw things differently.

"Richard Emery just has to quit smoking his own dope," said Rusty Hardin, one of Clemens' attorneys.

Andrew Marchand of ESPN 1050 in New York also reports that Clemens plans on continuing with his defamation suit against McNamee.

"Absolutely, the defamation is going forward," Joe Householder, the spokesman for Clemens' lawyer, Rusty Hardin. "The lawsuit is going forward."

As for a pardon from a president? "I'm not aware of Mr. Clemens having been charged with anything," White House deputy press secretary Tony Fratto said.

A spokesman for Rep. Darrell Issa of California said the hearing's partisan tone evolved because Republican members felt the hearing was overly focused on Clemens instead of the broader concerns raised in the Mitchell report on drugs in baseball.

"It's clear Democrats had expected a government-funded, TV show trial, and now they're whining that Republicans didn't want to play," said the spokesman, Frederick Hill. "The hearing was supposed to be about the Mitchell report. The Democrats are at fault for focusing on individual wrongdoing instead of the validity of the Mitchell report."

Said Issa: "We're not supposed to have these kinds of spectacles."

The ramifications from Wednesday's hearing might not be known a while. McNamee said he injected Clemens with steroids and human growth hormone. Clemens said he has never used either. Since both were under oath, one or both could face charges stemming from making false statements or obstructing.

"It's all hearsay. Everybody is all pointing fingers," San Francisco Giants reliever Steve Kline said of Clemens. "I pity the guy. Half the guys admitted it and they're not getting persecuted. It's just bad for baseball. Who cares about what happened in 1987? It's over. Who cares about Congress? We've got gasoline prices that are off the charts and they're worried about steroids. Maybe this gets people's minds off the war. Everybody's got skeletons in their closet. If you did it, admit it. If he didn't do it, I see why he's fighting his [tail] off," he said.

Perhaps Steve Kline should run for politics. That's the smartest thing anyone has said during this entire episode and because of that, he deserves my pick for quote of the day.

Roger Clemens Can Not Provide The Evidence That Brian McNamee Can.

Unfortunately in today's society, giving somebody your word just isn't good enough anymore. People want to see physical proof. Well, in the latest turn in the Roger Clemens case, the public got their physical proof.

Former personal trainer Brian McNamee has turned physical evidence that he believes will show Roger Clemens used performance-enhancing drugs over to federal investigators, his attorneys told the New York Daily News. "This is evidence the government has that we believe will corroborate Brian in every significant way," McNamee lawyer Earl Ward told the Daily News. The lawyers wouldn't discuss what the evidence is, but a source told the Daily News that McNamee gave vials with traces of steroids and human growth hormone, as well as blood-stained syringes and gauze pads that might contain Clemens' DNA, to the Justice Department's BALCO investigators.

I know people may be thinking that McNamee may have grabbed random syringes and blood from an animal or something to set Clemens up. Well, thats where the wonders of technology and science come into play.

The evidence has been sent to a lab for testing, and prosecutors might seek a court order for a DNA sample from Clemens if the evidence contains traces of drugs and blood, the Daily News reported. McNamee kept the vials, gauze pads and syringes from the 2000 and 2001 seasons because he feared Clemens would deny using performance-enhancing drugs, the source told the Daily News. "We will provide Congress with corroborative physical evidence that takes this case out of the he-said, she-said purview," another McNamee attorney, Richard Emery, told the Daily News. "From our point of view, this corroborates that Brian told the truth from Day One and Clemens has not."

Other witnesses may also come forward with information that corroborates McNamee's, the source told the Daily News.

Clemens gave a sworn deposition for about five hours to congressional lawyers behind closed doors Tuesday, addressing his former personal trainer's allegations. And this time, Clemens was under oath. "I just want to thank the committee, the staff that I just met with. They were very courteous," the seven-time Cy Young Award winner said, wearing a pinstriped gray suit instead of a pinstriped New York Yankees uniform. "It was great to be able to tell them what I've been saying all along -- that I've never used steroids or growth hormone." Tuesday's deposition was the first time Clemens faced legal risk if he were to make false statements.

One thing is for certain here. Next week in front of Congress if Roger Clemens doesn't change his testimony, then either Clemens or McNamee will be lying under oath. So far, the momentum has shifted in McNamee's favor.

One Of The Most Ridiculous Statements I Ever Heard Was In Today's Congressional Hearing With George Mitchell

I'm watching the congressional hearing on steroids at this moment and heard one of the most ridiculous statements.

First of all, I was pleased that Congress acknowledged the fact that MLB officials knew about steroids through the past decades and let the usage of steroids slide. This confirms my theory on steroids as a conspiracy in baseball.

However, I am not one of the millions of fans (as the spokes person stated) who felt cheated, angered, or believed baseball was a fraud. Why not? Because up until Jose Canseco's book I WAS entertained by baseball. Even if the players were cheating, the public didn't have to know about it. Ignorance is bliss.

One of the congressional women stated something along the lines that if people like me were entertained by players who used steroids, then there is no difference between a baseball game and a Britney Spears concert...................What the hell is that supposed to mean? Was she serious? She couldn't have been. Maybe I misinterpreted her statement, but still, that statement does not fit anywhere in this argument and is one of the dumbest comparisons I ever heard. Baseball is baseball and music is music and I'll be entertained by both by whatever means necessary. IF I was a Britney Spears fan and found out she was taking steroids (for whatever reason I don't know)....I would still go to her concert to be entertained. I wouldn't like her any less nor would it take away from her music.

That comparison was so bad that the congressional woman who stated it has lost all credibility in my eyes and her whole speech became one big waste. In fact, I stopped watching after that.

Why not make drugs that aren't detectable. I'm sure with today's new technology and modern understanding of drugs and medicine that this task is completely possible. Face it, steroids are never going to go away. Instead of accusing them of cheating, just make the players take them at their own risk if they so choose to. Now shut up and be entertained like you were before this whole steroid controversy spiraled out of control.

Its ridiculous now how these same players who tried to entertain us by whatever means necessary are getting chewed and ripped apart by the media and the public. Baseball fans are turning their backs on the very players they loved when all they wanted to do was win the game for their fans. Shame on baseball fans.

And a lot of these baseball players used steroids as a therapeutic and quicker way to recover. There should be nothing wrong with that. I want to see my favorite baseball player back on the field as soon as possible just like other fans.

Remembers, sports is all about the fans and making money. If this steroid controversy is as big as it seems, I guarantee in the future fans will stop watching and going to games and revenues will drop. Home runs won't be hit as frequently and games will have boring scores of 3-2 and 1-0. Chicks love the long ball. Thanks, Jose Canseco and George Mitchell. You're in the process of ruining baseball.

Ah, what do I know? I'm just a baseball fan...