Leave it to John Kerry to turn a simple plea from a football fan into leftist threat of government bullying unless he gets his way.
Kerry wrote a letter to Roger Gooddell, the Commissioner of the NFL, asking him to work out some arrangement by which the New England Patriots game could be seen by as much of new England as possible. The game is slated to be carried on the NFL Network, though one local station in Boston will also be televising it. The game’s a big deal because the Pats are playing for a perfect season, something done only once in the NFL, by the Miami Dolphins in 1972.
Kerry’s threat comes after the jump.
Here’s the truly egregious part of the letter.
For a game of this significance to be used as a bargaining chip or point of leverage between corporations locked in a dispute would say a great deal about the esteem in which America’s football fans are held by the big interests. Under the unfortunate circumstance that this matter remains unresolved, leaving 60 percent of households across the country – including thousands in Massachusetts – without access to Saturday’s game, I will ask the Senate Commerce Committee to hold hearings on how the emergence of premium sports channels are impacting the consumer, and I will consider what legislative measures may be necessary to ensure that consumers are more than bystanders in this process.
Sorry, folks, but this is just wrong. John Kerry is simply blackmailing the NFL to get what he wants and if he doesn’t, he’ll tie it up in hearings and bind it with the power of our government. He’s a bully and this, to me, is a simple and obvious abuse of his power. His fellow Senators needs to stop this before it even gets started and let the Senator know that the Congress is not his personal gang of thugs to be dispatched at his whim.
(via memeorandum)
I loathe Kerry and everything he stands for and he’s merely grandstanding.
I’d feel perhaps some pity for the NFL if I didn’t remember these are the same jerkwads demanding millions in PUBLIC funds be allowed to build caverns called stadiums else they’ll move their teams to another town. They charge insultingly high prices for tickets that the average working class guy can’t afford, the players make more in pay than the GPS of some third world nations. So pardon me if I don’t choke up because the A–holes are feeling some discomfort.
The Senate Commerce Committee should look into Tax Havens for Ketchup Companies located in other contries rather than American Business ,NFL, located in America.
Yea, I think you have a point here. Kerry’s taking it a tad far. If it were any other game no one would be bitching, either.
The NFL should respond by putting the game up on pay-per-view for $29.95.