Re: Sen Comcast is on now
I didn't watch the live Press Conference, but I guess the upshot is that Specter wants to conduct an investigation along the lines of the Mitchell Commission.
Here's my take:
1) From the snippets I heard and read of today's Press Conference, Sen. Specter seems to have lost his grip. Specter's reputation for years on the Hill has been that of a reasonable, moderate guy, unlike the primmadonna-ish reputations of many of his colleagues. His behavior in this case is really out of character. Perhaps it is age (though that's a biased thing to say) or perhaps it's a combination of age and the ravages of a terminal illness and its treatment. Or, perhaps someone made him really mad.
2) Did somebody do something to make this guy (Sen. Specter) really mad? Perhaps he feels that Goodell and the Patriots haven't been deferential enough to him as the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee and senior member of the Antitrust Subcommittee. Perhaps it was Goodell's failure to answer his original letter in a timely manner (Goodell claimed that the letter went to the wrong address and that he didn't see it for over a month after it was sent, but that sounds like a "the dog ate my homework" excuse). Senators of Specter's stature and seniority are accustomed to prompt, sycophantic responses to letters they personally sign on Senate business, usually the day they are received. Four to six weeks of silence is more or less unheard of.
3) To my knowledge, neither the NFL nor the Patriots have publically addressed the Antitrust dimension of this case. Specter is arguing that, since the NFL receives special considerations under what I believe is called the "Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961," Spygate raises reasonable concerns about the fairness of the League's competition. His argument is that congress has an interest in the integrity of the game since it is allowed, among other things, to package and sell the broadcast rights of 32 different teams, which has proven extremely lucrative for owners and players alike. Those of you who have longed to get the "NFL Sunday Ticket" but haven't been able to get it because you don't or (in my urban case) can't have a Dish, might be interested to know that Specter was complaining about this well before Spygate. This is also at the heart of the Comcast argument.
4) The bottom line is that I think Specter brought a pre-existing concern about access to NFL games to the table as well as a pre-existing loathing for the NFL's management and status. I was one of the first to point out Specter's financial ties to Comcast out here in February. Combine that with Specter's ego along with some clouding of his judgment due to age and illness and the Patriots were basically roadkill.
5) If you've never worked directly with or known US Senators, it's hard to appreciate just how massive their egos are. I would be very curious to know what the Krafts' strategy was for dealing with Specter (if they had one), whether they approached any senior members of the Massachusetts delegation or, indeed, what their relationship is with that delegation.
