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Home > Window on Washington > Archives > 2008 > March > 25
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Bush to pitch to substance abuser?
Here’s the potential dilemma. How would you handle it?
Hall of Fame baseball player George W. Bush (Little League Hall of Fame. You can look it up.) will throw the ceremonial first pitch Sunday at Nationals Park, new home of the Washington Nationals. The game will be nationally televised.
Bush has been an outspoken critic of steroid and substance abuse by baseball players. His name came up once in the Mitchell Report that documented the widespread abuse of performance enhancing substances by baseball players.
“In his January 2004 State of the Union address, President George W. Bush denounced the use of steroids in elite sports and called on athletes, owners, and unions to address the issue,” the report noted.
The Nationals’ starting catcher - and hence a natural choice to catch the cermonial first pitch - is expected to be Paul Lo Duca.
Lo Duca’s name comes up 37 times in the Mitchell Report, which said a former Mets clubhouse assistant who has acknowledged providing substance-enhancing drugs to players “estimated that he engaged in six or more transactions with Lo Duca.”
So here’s the potential opening-night visual: The president who is concerned about substance abuse in baseball winds up and throws the ceremonial pitch to a catcher linked to substance abuse. It’s all smiles and happiness as president and catcher pose for the post-pitch photo.
Would you call for somebody else to handle the ceremonial catching chore?
For the record, there is precedent for Bush throwing to somebody other than the home-team catcher. In Milwaukee in 2001, Bush threw to then-Brewers Manager Davey Lopes. At the post-9/11 World Series in New York he threw to Yankee backup catcher Todd Greene. In April 2006, Bush threw to Reds’ backup catcher Jason La Rue.
His two other ceremonial pitches went to the home-team starting catchers: the Cardinals’ Mike Matheny in April 2004 and the Nationals’ Brian Schneider in April 2005.
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White House press corps off target
Posted anonymously in the men’s bathroom in the White House press room.
A source familiar with the women’s bathroom reports there is no similar problem in their facility.
“We don’t misfire,” said the source.
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The president’s day (the update)
This just in re the president’s meeting with the champion fishermen (see item below) Alton Jones of Waco and Judy Wong of Many, Louisiana.
“I thought it was important to welcome these champs here to the White House, you know, to encourage people to fish,” Bush said. “There’s nothing better than fishing. … This is a good, clean sport. It’s a sport that requires good conservation in order to make sure our fisheries are good, and I love to welcome the champs here.”
Jones, who has fished with Bush, said the president “is actually a very good fisherman and a great conservationist. And I’m really not sure who’s working who here. I’m hoping to get an invite to fish on his lake in Crawford and he’s looking for a free fishing guide.”
“I’m a good fisherman,” Bush said. “Sometimes I’m a good catcherman.”
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The president’s day
This is about as eclectic as it gets in presidentdom. Today’s schedule for President Bush includes fishermen (fisherpersons?) and royalty, Greeks and wealthy/generous Republicans.
“I hope I can get through this without laughing,” Press Secretary Dana Perino said when she got to the fishing portion of the daily schedule. “There’s a lot of puns that can be made out of that.”
A few were. None worth reporting.
Today’s schedule for President Bush:
10:40 a.m.: The president participates in a photo opportunity with the 2008 Bassmaster Classic Champion and the 2008 Women’s Bassmaster Tour Champion.
11:10 a.m.: The president meets with the King of Bahrain. (This includes lunch. No word on whether that means fresh bass courtesy of the bassmasters.)
3:45 p.m.: The president makes remarks at celebration of Greek Independence Day.
6:45 p.m.: The president attends a National Republican Senatorial Committee reception.