Little Arlen wants to fly

Allow us to shake hands across the nerd-jock divide, and unite in hating on Pennsylvania's senior Senator, Arlen Specter. ESPN's anonymous Research Crew did a cutthroat fact-check on Specter's press release -- NYT take note! Let us, indeed, ponder the many meanings of "check"...

The whole story I love: last football season, New England got caught videotaping the New York Jets in an attempt to catch signals. They were caught, docked a draft pick, and Bill Belichick was fined. For the NFL's purposes, case closed. (You can think whatever you want of the league's self-punishment, but I'm not ready to argue for de-monopolizing sports, particularly when I can think of a half-dozen more pernicious oligopolies to bust.) Week 2 goes on as scheduled.

The season and postseason come to a rousing conclusion, and Senator Specter starts harassing people for Super Bowl tickets. He tries a move on NFL commissioner Goodell's office; an aide gives him the brushoff. Immediately after the Super Bowl, Specter launches a jihad against "cheating" in the NFL, calling hearings that no one but he and Goodell attends, lashing out at the NFL in the press. His office is the presumable source (as the "rumors" start and end with his office) of a Boston Herald story about the Patriots allegedly taping the St. Louis Rams in 2002; the Herald discovers the story is bogus and eventually recants.

But Specter doesn't! He can't get enough of Spygate! Reporters force him into denying this is a hatchet job for Comcast, which has its own beef with the NFL. Reporters also get him to deny his Eagles partisanship! (What, are you not one of those from Galilee?)

Among the many ironies is Specter's shock (shock!) that Goodell and the NFL destroyed the tapes rendered to them as evidence after punishment had been meted out. Compare that to the radio silence on the CIA destroying its tapes of torture at Guantanamo, after their internal review was completed.

But my favorite: this is the same Arlen who wants unlimited warrantless eavesdropping, no judicial review of national security letters, no legislative fetters on coercive interrogation, etc. This is the one-time DA who has time and again encouraged the administration to game the judicial system. In short, spying and cheating are only reprehensible if your name is Bill Belichick.

And clearly, Little Arlen has a point: nobody's looking to the Capitol for moral fiber. So why not score some hot box seats while we're here?

Finally, some legal counsel to Goodell: fess up to the spying, but claim an inability to describe the spying specifically for fear of compromising current operations, then insist that the incompletely described program is despite its nebulosity an essential element of the war on terror. Isn't that a bunch of amateurish, vague, obnoxious legalisms! Now can I get a job?
--
ds