August 8, 2007
Obama Strikes Out on Softball Question about Hardball
I heard about this on the radio this morning, and blogger Extreme Mortman (h/t) also caught it:
Asked whether, if he were president now, he’d honor Barry Bonds in the White House, Obama said:Yes, a simple question that should get a simple answer, no? And now that Bonds has broken the record, what will Sen. Obama say? By now he should have had time to have focus-grouped the question to see what the "right" answer is.“First of all he’s still got to hit one more. .. He hasn’t done it yet, so we’ll answer the question when he does.”Mere hours before Bonds hit his record-setting homerun, Obama hadn’t figured out his thoughts on whether he’s a hero or a villain? What difference would it have made before or after number 756? How would that additional homerun have affected Obama’s thoughts?Baseball may seem trivial next to, say, bombing our allies in Pakistan — but the Barry Bonds story does present fascinating and profound social issues for America. Many Americans have strong opinions on him. Apparently Obama is not among them.
A strike out for the Senator.
I'm no fan of Obama -- nor of Bonds -- but I think that was a really stupid question.
Do we really care whether Obama would invite Bonds to the White House or not? I mean, his answer would not have any impact on my decision whether or not to vote for him, and I'd have to wonder about anyone who would decide based on such an unimportant issue.
Is it fair to ask him to form a judgment on Bonds' guilt or innocence?
I've read "Game of Shadows," and I've heard enough about Bonds to conclude that he's a jerk (whether he took steroids or not).
We complain about how long the campaigns are, about how much time and money the candidates spend on feel-good events, and then we have a question like that.
I would have loved it if Obama had said, "Y'know Keith, I'm so busy campaigning I don't get to spend a lot of time watching baseball or reading about Barry Bonds' problems. Let's talk about something that matters to the voters, eh?"
Posted by: brassband at August 8, 2007 5:42 PMGeorge W. Bush honored Barry Bonds today. Dear friends! Where is your commentary! Please shed thy hypocrisy! Speak thy truth!
Posted by: Matt Jerzyk at August 9, 2007 12:13 AMMatt --
How did you miss the real story here?
Didn't you know that it was Cheney who personally injected the steroids into Bonds?
Yeah, that's the ticket. He did it right after he exploded the hurricane barriers in New Orleans and right before blowing up that Minnesota bridge . .
To get serious for a minute, Matt J, I was disappointed that President Bush called and congratulated Barry Bonds. Bonds cheated to get here. His record means nothing.
This is what President Bush said about the steroid "allegation":
“There is a lot of speculation about Barry Bonds, and my only advice for people is to just let history be the judge,” Bush said. “Let’s find out the facts, and then everybody’s opinion, one way or the other, will be verified or not verified.”
Bush does have a dog in the steroid fight, as former owner of the Texas Rangers - probably explains why he worked it into the SOTU one year. Jose Canseco had some of his best years in Texas. There's no evidence that Bush knew Canseco was juicing, but between Canseco and Juan Gonzalez, there was probably some serious steroid use going on under his watch.
Posted by: rhody at August 9, 2007 2:35 PMdarlene davis major motion picture castings keystone manor north miami ohlone spring break universal soundstage 21
Posted by: balabo_ph at October 7, 2008 6:12 AMdarlene davis major motion picture castings keystone manor north miami ohlone spring break universal soundstage 21
Posted by: balabo_ph at October 7, 2008 6:12 AMdarlene davis major motion picture castings keystone manor north miami ohlone spring break universal soundstage 21
Posted by: balabo_ph at October 7, 2008 6:13 AM