And Then He Said

There's been talk of a big screen movie based on the television series Dallas. Maybe Roger Clemens' chief attorney, Rusty Hardin, will get the role of J.R. Ewing. Representative Howard Waxman, co-chair of the Oversight committee handling the P.E.D. scandal, admonished Hardin for comments he made towards investigator Jeff Novitzky.

"If today's quotation is accurate, however, it goes beyond any personal enmity that exists between Roger Clemens and Mr. McNamee. I do not know your intent in making this statement, but under one interpretation it can be seen [as] an attempt to intimidate a federal law enforcement official in the performance of his official duties."

Waxman took action after Hardin was quoted in the NY Times as saying, "I can tell you this: If he ever messes with Roger, Roger will eat his lunch." Hardin quickly tried to spin the situation.

"What I meant by my less than choice words was that if in days to come Agent Novitzky decided to legally pursue Roger Clemens claiming Roger did something wrong, I believe he would lose. I meant nothing more, nothing less. It certainly was not meant as a threat of personal action against Agent Novitzky."

There has been some controversy surrounding Novitzky as well, particularly his handling of the BALCO case. One of the four judges presiding on the case, Susan Illston has questioned Novitzky's tactics and candor about his investigation.