Posted on 03/17/2005 12:17:34 PM PST by Cagey
WASHINGTON (AP) - Retired slugger Mark McGwire Thursday told a congressional panel investigating drugs in baseball that he would not "participate in naming names" of players who used steroids. McGwire did not say in his opening statement to the House Government Reform Committee whether he used steroids.
Two current players, Sammy Sosa and Rafael Palmeiro, said they never used steroids. That duo and McGwire were accused of using performance-enhancing drugs by Jose Canseco in a best-selling book that helped prompt the hearing.
In a tense scene, Canseco sat at the same table as the other players as he told the lawmakers that he could not fully answer their questions because of concerns his testimony could be used against him.
Choking back tears, his voice cracking, McGwire said he knows that steroid use can be dangerous and will do whatever he can to discourage young athletes from using them.
"What I will not do, however, is participate in naming names and implicating my friends and teammates," said McGwire, who ranks sixth in major league history with 583 homers.
Dittos....There are enough public pressures we could bring to bear on this issue (like not going to the parks, FReeping, ignoring the sport, etc.,). Congress is wasting tax $$ and time.
Hmmmmm.....bet thats never happened before. /sarcasm
I agree, the federal government has no role here. If I were a baseball player, I would tell that committee, "How dare you lecture me on being a role-model to our kids when you spend more than a year at taxpayer's expense chasing donors like some crack whore?"
"If anyone should be a role model to kids, it should be our leaders and yet most of you gave a pass to a sitting president who treated a young intern in his care like a hooker and lied to a federal grand jury."
"You have a sitting congressman who has molested young boys and two Senators-for-life, one of whom was a klansman and the other who doesn't have the decency to open a car door for a young lady."
This is nothing more than an attempt by McCainiac and his ilk to get there faces plastered all over the boob tube again.
The thing is, though, if that's their motive, I can't for the life of me envision what they would hope to ultimately accomplish. Suppose they get Palmeiro or someone to testify that "Bush knew". What happens next? Impeachment? Uh... I know that the (D)s are delusional but can they be that delusional?
i think bush probably did know but who cares? roids helped baseball. and what's wrong with that? if it makes them hit the ball further, its more fun so let them make that choice, they are adults. i say give em more drugs, they get paid enough for the physical risk.
and don't tell me about the children and influence, blah blah blah. parents should be teaching their kids about the risks and watching them more carefully. if your kid suddenly gets acne and starts bulging at the muscles, go get his butt tested and take him out of sports.
you won't get rid of roids in the sport, the testing is a joke. and that's because it works for the sport. the only other solution is to start a new league with testing and who wants to watch those guys hitting less?
Baseball is cleaning up it's act finally. Seems to be a a terrific opportunity for Henry "Nostrilitis" Waxman and the rest of the committee to get some "face time" on TV and give the impression that Congress is actually doing something constructive, when all they are doing is "grandstanding" (if you'll pardon a terrible pun)
Establishing that it is a "problem" would consist of something more than parading out a handful of anecdotal cases, I would think.
Then those parents were not parenting. They should spend more time getting to know their kids rather than expecting everyone else to model proper behavior for them.
It's indeed sad that we have allowed our kids to be enamored with athletes and celebrities and not pointed them to who the true heroes are.
Wonder if McCain would care to have his wife's ILLEGAL drug use, and drug thefts from her workplace, exploited before the world.
"They don't make an asterisk large enough to put next to McGwire's name in the record books"
or Bonds, Sosa,Giambi,Sheffield...
But the NFL has almost no abuse whatsoever, because they test once a year and almost no one tests positive.(sarcasm)
Sure they can, it's all about hatred with the Democrats. They couldnj't sell "Bush lied" in Iraq, so they want to sell "Bush knew" about steroids.
Yeah but who would care? Besides people who are already Bush-haters, I mean? :-)
"...they're so anxious to bring Bush down that they'll make even this stretch in an attempt to make it happen."
Didn't Dubya call on MLB to address this problem in his 03 or 04 SOTU address?
IIRC all the talking heads wondered why he would include it.
I don't think Bonds will become the single season champ, but sadly I do think he'll hold the career record for some time.
He ALREADY HAS the single season championship.
The media and the gullible public. This isn't about steroids, it's about judges, Social Security, and mandates. Waxman just wants to damage Bush until 2006 and 2008.
McGwire can end the debate right now, today by stating under oath that he never used steroids. End of story.
I dunno. I just can't see it affecting any of those things either way. *shrug* That doesn't mean it's not the (D)s' strategy, though, I admit. I'd never accuse them of employing strategies that actually make sense.
Why is there a "debate" in the first place? Why do you care?
McGwire also hit 49 HR in his rookie year (1987) Bonds only hit more than 40 HR three times before the 2000 season. In fact, 37% of Bonds' homers are in the last 5 of his 19 seasons (258 out of 703)
The big question.....why did the panel not subpoena Bonds??
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