Nannygate

Much of yesterday's circus they call a hearing centered around a party held by Jose Canseco in 1998. Yes, that is correct; they want people to recollect who/what/where from almost 10 years ago.

It was at that party, at the home of Canseco and his wife, that Brian McNamee saw Roger Clemens speaking with Canseco. McNamee feels that conversation may have been what prompted Clemens to approach him about the use of steroids.

Clemens denied being at the party and Canseco and his (now former) wife signed an affidavit confirming Clemens' statements.

When questioned why he knew Clemens was definitely at the Canseco's, McNamee recalled that he saw a child running loose near the pool area and a woman came to collect him. When McNamee asked who the child and woman were, someone told him that it was one of Clemens' kids and their nanny.

The nanny would turn out to be one of the most influential people on the day. Oversight committee chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif) asked why it took so long for Clemens' representatives to get back to the committee with the nanny's contact information. The response made Roger Clemens look very bad.

Clemens found out last Friday that the committee was looking for the nanny's info, so he got it. But instead of just giving it to the committee, he contacted the nanny and asked her to come to his home to meet with him (and without it being said, his lawyer(s)). The nanny, who does not speak English very well, agreed and met with Clemens, who had not had contact with her since 2001 or 2002, over the weekend.

Clemens claimed he merely was meeting with her to make sure she told the truth. Clemens' people then did not give the contact info to the committee until Monday. Finally, the nanny was contacted and questioned. Her response was damaging to Clemens' story.

While she did not recall any party, she did confirm that the Rocket and his wife were at Canseco's house during the time period in question. In fact, Debbie Clemens, the kids, and the nanny stayed overnight at one point.

This left Clemens spinning his wheels and clearly damaged his alibi/testimony. He could come back and try to say, using semantics, that he merely answered he was not at a party, but that would not fly. He clearly stated he was not at the Canseco household.

So what happens now? While Congress may be done with all of this, it would not be out of the question for federal investigators to further delve into the matter and determine if Clemens lied under oath.

The circus/witch hunt continues.