Clemens Is Guilty

For those of you smart enough to not try to listen to the Congressional Hearing today regarding the Mitchell Report on performance enhancing drugs in baseball, let me give you the executive summary: Roger Clemens used steroids and HGH, and he is lying about it.

The entire hearing boiled down to the story told by McNamara versus the story told by Clemens. They are in direct opposition, so one of them is lying. There is no middle ground. So let me explain why I think the hearing blew Clemens version out of the water. Let me preface this by saying this is 100% my own opinion from listening to and watching the hearing during the morning while studying. I have not heard any spin or opinions about the hearing, and it is still going on. I had heard enough.

McNamara accused 3 players of using steroids/HGH. Chuck Knoblach, Andy Pettite and Roger Clemens. Two of them admitted it under oath and corroborated McNamara's story. Pettite even gave testimony, including follow-up affidavits, saying that Clemens admitted using steroids/HGH to him. Clemens denied it. Clemens approach was to attack McNamara and his shady history. Granted, McNamara has lied in the past, which weakens his credibility as a witness, but what did he lie about? He lied to cover up steroid/HGH use by players he knew!!! So the lie they are calling him out on actually proves the point that he gave injections to players!

Furthermore, in the most telling part of the hearings for me... One huge issue in which McNamara and Clemen's testimony differs is regarding Clemens presence at a party at Jose Canseco's house. Clemens absolutely denies he was ever there and several congressman hammered McNamara trying to show he lied about Clemens being there. I find it comical that their big piece of evidence was an affadavit by Jose Canseco! So now Canseco is the credible source in steroids? But the highlight was when one of the congressman asked about Clemens nanny. McNamara says he knows Clemens was at the meeting because he remembers seeing Clemens kid and nanny there. When Congress tried to talk to the nanny, on a Friday they requested her contact info. Clemens did not give them the info, despite repeated requests, until Monday. In the meantime, Clemens called her himself and had her to his house to question her. He then had his lawyers question her. Only after they had questioned her did they give Congress her info. Sounds like tampering to me! Then came the bombshell... The nanny swore that she, Clemens kids and wife all stayed at Canseco's house for a couple days during the time in question! So how was Roger Clemens not there now? His own former nanny says he was. I also cannot do justice to what was happening on TV while this was going on. Clemens lawyers went crazy, wouldn't let Clemens speak, grabbed the microphone and started talking - strictly prohibited in this forum. This frantic reaction was all the confirmation I needed.

So in the game of who is telling the truth, all evidence points to McNamara. Every fact he made was confirmed by other sources. The apparent lies McNamara made were also proven to be true, further strengthening his statements. It is clear that Clemens lied. The sickening part of the hearings is how several of the Congressmen were just kissing Clemens butt. They railed on McNamara while praising Clemens. Despite all the evidence, and with McNamara having nothing to gain, they chose to believe Clemens. At that point with all the grandstanding, I turned it off.