Waxman wraps things up, and the main story is that we know that Pettite and Knoblauch have corroborated McNamee's story. He struck his gavel as Clemens tried to speak out during the close. Waxman apologized to McNamee, and rightly so - he took some really unwarranted abuse from some of the more deranged members of the committee. It becomes very clear during this kind of testimony which Congresspeople have law degrees and which do not.
Waxman appears to be biased against Clemens, but as the committee member who has spent the most time on this, it's understandable. The evidence is stacked against Clemens. Pettite and McNamee were both good friends of Clemens who in the past had stridently defended him, but in the end, under oath, they both told the truth. Knoblauch as well. McNamee's story holds up to scrutiny; Clemens' is highly implausible (and he doesn't have much of a response, really, aside from talking about how awesome he is and attacking McNamee's character).
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McNamee's behavior in response to a lot of the questioning was surprisingly composed. If anyone had come at me the way Burton had, I would have angrily asked him whether he was really seriously putting his committee and NY tabloid papers on the same level. But he calmly answered Yes or No to most of the questions from his assailants. Only when Shays (R-CT, again, a Republican) characterized him as a drug dealer towards the end did McNamee say anything more in response to an attack, and that was only to say "In your opinion." McNamee, it must be said, was literally a "drug dealer", but to characterize him as a common crack hood is misleading, as HGH and steroids are not exactly drugs of recreational abuse, and his illegal work was at the behest of two or three pretty rich and famous people. Waxman pointed out the latter fact (pointing at Clemens) after Shays ceased his attack.
Cummings was just being interviewed on TV upon conclusion of the session. He said that he thought these proceedings cleared up a lot for him. I think they did for the public as well. Clemens' ship is sinking. His attempt to silence the nanny before she spoke to the committee is really damaging. You just can't make this stuff up, can you? What a bizarre circus.
It's odd, as a sports fan working in Washington, DC, to sit here and see these two worlds collide. As Jayson Stark pointed out, it's sad, because most of us enjoy sports largely because they're an escape from real life. But in sports, as in politics, justice is paramount. Nothing today was definitive, but the session was clarifying. We might not be sure of Clemens' guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, but I think we're getting to the point where a preponderance of the evidence weighs against Clemens. Someone committed perjury here today. I think the Rocket's future destination may well be federal prison.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
'Roid Wrap-up
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2 comments:
Isn't it odd that beyond his supposed adversity to his wife using HGH that Clemens has not once mentioned how bad HGH and steroids are? I figured he would have played that angle more. He could have played the self-righteous "everyone-else-was-doing-it-but-i-didn't" card, but instead chose to say that no one, even his best friend, ever talked about it. EVER.
He did mention towards the end that HGH and steroids are bad and that he wanted to be a role model of someone who was successful without them, but it was striking to me that McNamee's statement against steroid use was more impassioned and eloquent. It is really odd that Clemens tried to keep saying that he never talked to anyone about HGH and that he didn't know anything about it. That seems implausible, even if he wasn't using it.
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