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Government soap opera
As the investigation into whether or not Roger Clemens used Human Growth Hormone (HGH) and steroids reaches a climax, it seems that many of our government officials are more suited for daytime television than making decisions about serious issues currently facing our nation.
With limited time and money at hand, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and a panel have decided to spend it by trying to determine whether or not Roger Clemens cheated the game of baseball and its millions of fans.
Is it a serious issue? Yes. Is it worthy of national attention? Absolutely. Is it a government issue worthy of taxpayer dollars? No way.
As the story unfolds, we have learned that Clemens’ former trainer, Brian McNamee, has kept for the last seven years what he alleges are needles that he used to inject HGH and steroids into Clemens.
Meanwhile, Andy Pettitte, a Yankee pitcher and very close friend of Clemens, with whom Clemens trained during the off-season, will not have to testify against Clemens in public. The House of Representatives Oversight Committee has apparently decided that his deposition already given would be sufficient.
The media speculation is that Pettitte verified McNamee’s claims from the Mitchell Report late last year and that further testimony isn’t needed. Whether or not this is true remains to be seen.
What we do know is that someone is lying and someone is going to perjure himself. Either McNamee is lying about injecting Clemens or Clemens is lying about taking steroids and HGH.
It’s truly turned into something that is only suitable for daytime television, and unfortunately, our government is right in the middle of it.
It’ll be interesting to see who plays the government officials and what light they are cast in when the issue is made into a mini-series. Looks like the writers’ strike is over just in time.
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