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Political Sports Theatre

This entire Brian McNamee v. Roger Clemens thing is beginning to look like a 12 round bout.

At this round–which I assume to be either the 6th or 7th, Clemens has so far attacked McNamee with a nasty PR smear campaign, testified against him on Capitol Hill, and publicly played a recorded conversation in a debacle eerily reminiscent of something Linda Tripp would do.

McNamee, to his credit, appears to have taken the blows in stride. He named Clemens in the Mitchell report and testified on Capitol Hill that he injected Rocket with steroids and HGH at least 16 times in 1998, 2000, and 2001. But McNamee’s latest revelations are bizarre. Needles and vials? Injecting Clemens’ wife, Debbie, with HGH before an SI Swimsuit Photo Shoot? It’s like an episode of Dallas… or dare I say The O.C. for that matter. I’m wondering what the bleep is going to happen next.

It’s worth noting that an ESPN poll that aired yesterday indicated 70% of respondents in support of McNamee. The fact that 30% believe Clemens at all is a testament to the Pitcher’s PR juggernaut, given public perception of steroid use in baseball. This blogger can appreciate good spin when he sees it. Props.

Its very likely that things have gotten a wee bit out of hand. The sequence of events makes me wonder if Congressional leaders have been aware of these details all along. Smells like useless political theater, but I can’t deny finding it sexy. Get this straight–

Sports, Cheating, Lies, Audiotapes, Needles, Politics, Money…?

Thats an American love story. Somebody has to be chasing the movie rights.

Disregarding my carnal lust for a good scandal, I don’t understand why this issue belongs in Congress. Yeah, maybe they have a law granting them a loose jurisdiction over corruption, or consumer protection, or whatever the hell they want for that matter… but really now!? This is a humongous, expensive waste of time and everybody knows it.

Note to Congress: You have a 20% approval rating. Do you expect hanging out with the Rocket to make you look cool?

This is an issue to be heard in the court system. . . before judges. That’s their job. These Congressmen need to ditch this pet project, so they can get back to real issues and making laws. Better yet, Clemens and McNamee can both go away and we’ll just forget the whole thing ever happened.

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