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Will Bunch looks at Arlen Specter's odd choice to go after the NFL and the New England Patriots "spygate" scandal and finds it's a tangled Comcastic mess.

About Nicole Belle
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Mom, Wife, Media Critic/Political Analyst, Blogger, Austen Fanatic, Unapologetic Liberal NicoleBelle@crooksandliars.com
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Batocchio's picture

Hard to beat that post title!

The Political Junkie's picture

Arlen Spector can't investigate himself. His paw prints are all over the Patriot Act, so it's easier to go after Bill Bellicheck for cheating.

Doesn't matter, anyway - the NY Giants are the NFL Champs. Would have mattered if the Pats actually won the game that counted the most.

Don Davis's picture

Specter actually wants to impeach Bill Belichick.

pissed off patricia's picture

Well, thank god Specter has his priorities straight. (snark, just in case you couldn't guess)

Cats r Flyfishn's picture

Arlan, you stupid old fool. Your Democratic challenger is getting ready to knock you out of office in 2 more years. Pennsylvania is sick and tired of stupid Republicans. And btw, Arlan, your investigation into the New England Patriots is going to improve our nation, how? Will it bring good paying jobs back to the US? Will it improve the economy? Will it stop illegal spying on Americans? Will it save the Constitution? Will it provide health care for all Americans? Please tell me, Arlan. I need to know.

Sarah Connah's picture

What an insufferable BASTARD!
This is the same clown that promoted the "Magic Bullet" theory while hatching Easter eggs on the Warren Commision!
What an insufferable BASTARD!
Throw Joe 'Scar' in that pit as well!

theWalrus's picture

Arlen Sphincter is a brain-addled, mendacious, doddering old fool. Occasionally, he wakes up from his deep slumber to proclaim just how SHOCKED he is with the Bushistas and then promptly nods off and drools all over his Brooks Brother suit.

Joementum's picture

Give Specter a break.

It's obvious Cheney's calling in plays from the sidelines.

MargeAggedon's picture

So I guess we're all done pretending their's a baseball crisis are we? Time to make up a new "distract the sheeple and give the fake news something to rant about 24/7 until the next big storm" crisis.
Just so long as nobody actually starts focusing on the crime syndicate that is the white house or actually doing something about it.

And's picture

Can I elect to not pay federal taxes that will fund this "investigation". Because videotaping another team at a sports match is not something I think needs Federal interference. Wouldn't the "free market" rule on it anyway?

Mike Mid City's picture

Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends.

With all the business before the congress; war, terrorist, debt, health, national security, global warming, trade imbalance, this is what is put out as the nations business.

The White House has told the Congress to "Go Cheney yourselves" and it's the NFL that gets investigated.

below_me's picture

yes, they should waste a whole lot of time investigating steroid use in baseball since it does affect every single man woman and child in america.

god no wonder there approval rating is in the shitter!

ysbaddaden's picture

I regret that I only have one life to give

For my team owner?

BAC's picture

Your title says it all.

BAC

miss_kitty's picture

Maybe he can look into Pete Rose while he's feeling all sportif. I heard he was a gambler, or something.

And what about Ira Einhorn, you waste of skin sad human being with no real purpose?

An Average Joe's picture

I think it is obvious that Arlen has been on the receiving end of a bottle of Chivas Regal for way too long. His bulbous nose and misplaced priorities are two dead giveaways!

ysbaddaden's picture
ConcernedCanuck's picture

Watch what the right hand does, and don't worry 'bout the right one. Smoke and mirrors. For our next magic trick..................

uncle joe mccarthy's picture

wait, we are attacking arlen for investigating this, but not our own dems for investigating roid use in baseball?

please

And's picture

uncle joe mccarthy @ 19:

wait, we are attacking arlen for investigating this, but not our own dems for investigating roid use in baseball?

please

You're right of course. The baseball/steroid thing is just as silly. If grown men want to shrink their twig-n-berries what do i care? I do care that we have two head members of organized crime running the country. Who will be this generation's Eliot Ness?

Jet Fan's picture

Eh, they're both evil.

Max-1's picture

.

I'm awaiting Congress to debate "The Saving Brittney Spears Act"

.

gallery's picture

Good one Nicole !
I went to the parade yesterday and was lucky enough to snag a ticket to the city hall ceremony.
Best part of the day was the obvious LACK of Rudy. It must have given him fits that the biggest spotlight on the city in 7 years was able to go on without his "unwavering" leadership.
I can just imagine his spit lisped tirade that "Americas' mayor" wasn't invited to help celebrate his ego.
Har De Har har.

fiver's picture

Hey everybody! Look over there! Pay no attention here; there's celebrities to watch.

Is this his cheap way of getting to meet the members of the Patriots team? Kind of like the investigation into the use of steroids in baseball so the senators could meet all the big hot shot baseball players.

gallery @ 23:

Good one Nicole !
I went to the parade yesterday and was lucky enough to snag a ticket to the city hall ceremony.
Best part of the day was the obvious LACK of Rudy. It must have given him fits that the biggest spotlight on the city in 7 years was able to go on without his "unwavering" leadership.
I can just imagine his spit lisped tirade that "Americas' mayor" wasn't invited to help celebrate his ego.
Har De Har har.

Rudy couldn't go anyway, he's too busy kissing McCain's ass.

Terrible's picture

Arlen Specter illegally using his position to help corporate donors. I'm shocked I tell ya!

So it's easier for the kids to digest, here is The Island of Lost Documents, E-mails and Videotapes.

--WKW

centralilgirl's picture

Investigation, investigation, investigation, investigation, investigation, and more investigations. WTF? Nothing comes from them. No articles of impeachment has been taken seriously by congress and your damned investigations just give a good laugh to those you are investigating. Spector, your mouth says one thing and your pen says another. Remember JFK's immortal words...."Those who make peaceful revolution impossible make violent revolution inevitable". And with all the crap going on in the world today, NO ONE CARES about the Patriot's spying. What about BUSH'S spying, or AT&T, Verizon and so on? Go after them! After all, that IS the Federal Government and the Patriots are a football team for crying out loud!

Media Concepts's picture

Since when, after 2006, does Arlen Specter get to decide what to investigate? The Democrats control Congress now.

Joe's picture

I looked for the NFL antitrust exemption. All I found was this: Radovich v. NFL, 352 US 445 (1957). In the opinion, Associate Justice Tom Clark says that there is NO NFL antitrust exemption. So, I wonder about the intellectual foundation of the rest of Senator Specter's thoughts.

Whodat's picture

Yes, while the real PA spygate is a far more important story, this NFL spygate is not a small peanuts. Millions, if not billions, are bet on these games, and if one team has the other teams pre-game practice, then the game is over before it starts. If the NFL has been condoning this, there are going to be lawsuits galore, yes? Apparently the Pats had filmed the Rams' practice the day before a previous superbowl. How much money was bet on that superbowl, which was at that point a forgone conclusion.

With that said, yes, Arlen is an ass.

Left&Left's picture

Spector, why the fuck are you beating this dead horse? Belichick learned this spying shit from the Bush crime family.

ConcernedCanuck's picture

Media Concepts @ 30:

Since when, after 2006, does Arlen Specter get to decide what to investigate? The Democrats control Congress now.

Shhhhhhhhh........don't tell them. They are waiting for the next Dem Presidential candidate to tell them that Reps aren't in charge. Let them sleep. They are tired, what with bending over backwards to help Bush/Cheney, and with all these real important investigations. Can you imagine the outcome if this team is allowed to get away with cheating? Why, global markets will crash, Iraqis will die, Iran will build nukes, Israel will kill Palestinians, etc, etc.

pissed off patricia's picture

Pats spying on some other team = crime
US govt spying on all of us = sure, no problem

MargeAggedon's picture

uncle joe mccarthy @ 19:

wait, we are attacking arlen for investigating this, but not our own dems for investigating roid use in baseball?

please

Actually my post @9 includes the baseball thing and I agree it is every bit as stupid and is an obvious dodge to avoid doing any real investigating into actual crimes.
It's all crap. I'm surprised they don't just designate washington a sewage pond and fill it in.

ConcernedCanuck's picture

MargeAggedon @ 36:

uncle joe mccarthy @ 19:

wait, we are attacking arlen for investigating this, but not our own dems for investigating roid use in baseball?

please

Actually my post @9 includes the baseball thing and I agree it is every bit as stupid and is an obvious dodge to avoid doing any real investigating into actual crimes.
It's all crap. I'm surprised they don't just designate washington a sewage pond and fill it in.

Ya, but the best part is......if Hillary and Obama are virtually tied at the end of the process, these are the clowns that will decide!!!!!!!!!!

CoIntelPro's picture

Arsehole Sphincter wants to "investigate" something?
I can't wait for the "magic football" and the "lone cameraman" theories.

Joe O.'s picture

This is a sham and a waste of tax payer money. Its not the job of Congress to investigate the NFL, Major League Baseball, Hollywood or any other privately owned business. It is their business to investigate potential criminal wrong doing by the Government itself and they have failed miserably at that. The only way I can see this is if the NFL were contracted out or paid by the Government itself. Since that is not the case then leave the investigation of those businesses to those that own them. What is Specter going to investigate next? Port-o-Johns?

Liberal AND Proud's picture

Hmmm...so they hit both the Jets AND Eagles?

Is this the spawning of "the single Belichick theory"?

KCThinker's picture

Hey stupid Americans. Look over here so you won't see how bad I am screwing you here, here, and here.

They have to look like they are doing something without actually doing anything.

liberalista's picture

Whodat @ 32:

Yes, while the real PA spygate is a far more important story, this NFL spygate is not a small peanuts. Millions, if not billions, are bet on these games, and if one team has the other teams pre-game practice, then the game is over before it starts. If the NFL has been condoning this, there are going to be lawsuits galore, yes? Apparently the Pats had filmed the Rams' practice the day before a previous superbowl. How much money was bet on that superbowl, which was at that point a forgone conclusion.

With that said, yes, Arlen is an ass.

I agree. I read through the explanation of Arlen's involvement with Comcast and how it relates to this investigation and I'm not sure I'm making the connection, however I don't think this warrants a Congressional investigation. I think there may have been criminal activity, and that should be looked into by the appropriate law enforcement people. Clearly, tapes were destroyed that should not have been, and there is the appearance of possible cheating in the NFL. As a result, consumers are being cheated. I'd like someone to get to the bottom this, but not Arlen Specter. I've hated him since the Anita Hill hearings.

romary's picture

while he's at he he could revisit the JFK assassination single bullet - most likely there is a whole lot o' cheating going on in the nfl and the mega rich owners want to keep a lid on it.....this will, as most everything he's touched over the last 30+ yrs, result in nada

romary's picture

btw - props to Miss Kitty for reminding us all about that murderous waste product Ira Einhorn that AS defended

Tyler Durden's picture

Whodat @ 32:

Yes, while the real PA spygate is a far more important story, this NFL spygate is not a small peanuts. Millions, if not billions, are bet on these games, and if one team has the other teams pre-game practice, then the game is over before it starts. If the NFL has been condoning this, there are going to be lawsuits galore, yes? Apparently the Pats had filmed the Rams' practice the day before a previous superbowl. How much money was bet on that superbowl, which was at that point a forgone conclusion.

I thought bookies were illegal in most states.

I guess that next we will see Congress investigating the claims that some pot growing provinces are spiking their product with lower quality dope and charing as if it was primo rocket weed. After all, billions of dollars go on the dope trade, and consumers need protecting...

jack damage's picture

Spector? If you think people really give a damn about football teams spying on each other and athletes killing themselves slowly with steroids with the nation in the toilet thanks to your boy and you and your kinds refusal to stop it?... Then you are even stupider then you think we thought you were..... On steroids as an issue? 17 years too late idiot! On teams spying? Yawn, if the NFL can't police themselves, it wouldn't be the first time, and it won't be the last....And whatever act you are pulling ain't going to amount to squat in the end... You really ought to stop wasting everyones time and everyones tax dollars on this piddly shit and do something about the some of the REAL problems we are facing that YOU ought to focus your time and energy on... These dog and pony shows to try and snooker everyone into thinking you actually do something is about as tired and worn out as Ray-guns trickle down bullshit.... Fucking knock it off!!!... I don't give a fuck if Bill Bellichik is a bad man and a sore loser... We have a moron running the nation into the gutter with a sick sociopath asshole with a sneer for a smile pulling this numbnut puppets strings... Do something about that why don'tcha... You stupid fuck! JD

Tyler Durden's picture

Joe O. @ 39:

This is a sham and a waste of tax payer money. Its not the job of Congress to investigate the NFL, Major League Baseball, Hollywood or any other privately owned business. It is their business to investigate potential criminal wrong doing by the Government itself and they have failed miserably at that. The only way I can see this is if the NFL were contracted out or paid by the Government itself. Since that is not the case then leave the investigation of those businesses to those that own them. What is Specter going to investigate next? Port-o-Johns?

I don't know if this is the job of congress, but even if it was... their priorities should be straight.

With all the shit we are going through as a nation, the fact that these parasites are wasting our borrowed dollars on a bunch of guy in tights patting themselves in the ass every weekend is quite telling.

liberalNmoderation's picture

jack damage @ 46:

Spector? If you think people really give a damn about football teams spying on each other and athletes killing themselves slowly with steroids with the nation in the toilet thanks to your boy and you and your kinds refusal to stop it?... Then you are even stupider then you think we thought you were..... On steroids as an issue? 17 years too late idiot! On teams spying? Yawn, if the NFL can't police themselves, it wouldn't be the first time, and it won't be the last....And whatever act you are pulling ain't going to amount to squat in the end... You really ought to stop wasting everyones time and everyones tax dollars on this piddly shit and do something about the some of the REAL problems we are facing that YOU ought to focus your time and energy on... These dog and pony shows to try and snooker everyone into thinking you actually do something is about as tired and worn out as Ray-guns trickle down bullshit.... Fucking knock it off!!!... I don't give a fuck if Bill Bellichik is a bad man and a sore loser... We have a moron running the nation into the gutter with a sick sociopath asshole with a sneer for a smile pulling this numbnut puppets strings... Do something about that why don'tcha... You stupid fuck! JD

Jack....that was damn near verbatim what I was wantin to say!

David's picture

All of them have sold their sold to the devil(Bush)..May God(Ron Paul) save us all .... LOL......Enjoy!

Biggus Diggus's picture

Best post title evah! EVAH!

Tyler Durden's picture

David @ 49:

All of them have sold their sold to the devil(Bush)..May God(Ron Paul) save us all .... LOL......Enjoy!

Ron Paul reminds me of the Good cop/Bad cop approach to things. He is the good cop, alas at the end of the day the keyword is "cop" or GOP in this case. You are still getting shafted...

When I first heard about this I almost crashed my car from laughing. I was reminded by my companion that if I "give it a little while, his agitation will subside and he'll lapse back into his coma of uselessness."

MattR's picture

Joe @ 31:

I looked for the NFL antitrust exemption. All I found was this: Radovich v. NFL, 352 US 445 (1957). In the opinion, Associate Justice Tom Clark says that there is NO NFL antitrust exemption. So, I wonder about the intellectual foundation of the rest of Senator Specter's thoughts.

The Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 creates an exemption to anttrust law that allows professional sports leagues to pool their rights for broadcast purposes. It is this exemption that allows the NFL to have a multi billion dollar TV contract whose revenue gets shared amongst all teams.

MargeAggedon's picture

ConcernedCanuck @ 37:

MargeAggedon @ 36:

uncle joe mccarthy @ 19:

wait, we are attacking arlen for investigating this, but not our own dems for investigating roid use in baseball?

please

Actually my post @9 includes the baseball thing and I agree it is every bit as stupid and is an obvious dodge to avoid doing any real investigating into actual crimes.
It's all crap. I'm surprised they don't just designate washington a sewage pond and fill it in.

Ya, but the best part is......if Hillary and Obama are virtually tied at the end of the process, these are the clowns that will decide!!!!!!!!!!

We're boned.

Wily's picture

Investigating patriots; that's all that needs to be said.

gempei's picture

Arlen Specter would also have been told to see a chiropractor, only to go to choir practice instead.

lolo's picture

The Patriots will get their well-deserved asterisk about the time Scooter Libby gets raped in prison.

tjb's picture

Thank God they got to the bottom of the Tillman murder!

Liberal AND Proud's picture

David @ 49:

All of them have sold their sold to the devil(Bush)..May God(Ron Paul) save us all .... LOL......Enjoy!

That post made the baby Jesus cry.

sah's picture

MargeAggedon @ 9:

So I guess we're all done pretending their's a baseball crisis are we? Time to make up a new "distract the sheeple and give the fake news something to rant about 24/7 until the next big storm" crisis.
Just so long as nobody actually starts focusing on the crime syndicate that is the white house or actually doing something about it.

Couldn't have said it better> And why in the fuck is a current US Senator investigating a NFL coach?? Oh, thats right, they're the dreaded, evil New England Patriots.

Holly's picture

Your title says it all. I'm glad someone finally said what I've been thinking.

liberalNmoderation's picture

Liberal AND Proud @ 59:

David @ 49:

All of them have sold their sold to the devil(Bush)..May God(Ron Paul) save us all .... LOL......Enjoy!

That post made the baby Jesus cry.

Ahem...dontcha mean...made Little Baby Jebus (LBJ) cry? ;)

Dash Riprock's picture

I think Arlen's depends is full.

LibertyLover's picture

Heh. Nice Headline...

Joe's picture

MattR @53:
So if Arlen is only referring to an antitrust exemption that applies to broadcasting rights, and no other aspect of the NFL's operations, does he plan to limit his investigation in some unexplained manner?

abarts's picture

Didn't they just vote themselves a pay raise in the past year? CLEAN BOTH HOUSES AND START FRESH.

NoGWBpolicyleftinplace's picture

pissed off patricia @ 35:

Pats spying on some other team = crime
US govt spying on all of us = sure, no problem

You are right of course. But there is one thing us non-republicans fail to recognize.

If it can be proven that the Patriots did cheat, then what we obviously need is another round of massive tax-cuts for the richest 2% of Americans. Everyone should know by now, that if you cut taxes, people will no longer be compelled to cheat or gamble, the blind will see, hunger and disease will cease to exist, and the government will have endless revenues to share with all!

AshWilliams's picture

So he's going to investigate if the Patriots spied on the Eagles THREE years ago in the Super Bowl??? What is this going to accomplish? It's just like the link said, he's just a big corporate waterboy.

Iggles Fan's picture

Investigate BOTH!

uncle joe mccarthy @ 19:

wait, we are attacking arlen for investigating this, but not our own dems for investigating roid use in baseball?

please

Them, too, dammit! There were other things to waste time on, rather than giving us the image of a lying Rafael Palmeiro and a sniveling Mark McGwire on camera.

knifewrench's picture

Joe @ 31:

I looked for the NFL antitrust exemption. All I found was this: Radovich v. NFL, 352 US 445 (1957). In the opinion, Associate Justice Tom Clark says that there is NO NFL antitrust exemption. So, I wonder about the intellectual foundation of the rest of Senator Specter's thoughts.

I've been wondering about that myself. I know baseball got an antitrust exemption in like the 1920s, but I'd always understood that they were the only pro sports league that had one. So Specter's just full of crap on that? Imagine...

MattR's picture

Joe @ 65:

MattR @53:
So if Arlen is only referring to an antitrust exemption that applies to broadcasting rights, and no other aspect of the NFL's operations, does he plan to limit his investigation in some unexplained manner?

I don't see why the scope would be limited. The broadcasting exemption was created because Congress felt that it was a benefit to consumers to make the NFL available nationally. As far as I can tell there is no reason why they could not reevaluate the NFL as a whole to decide if it was still the case.

It is obviously not the case, but if it turned out that the NFL was fixing games there is no doubt that Congress could, should and would step in.

EZ's picture

Specter's comments are hilarious and as well sounds idiotic.

I guess Spector and Feingold have been sent to warn you ahead of time. They are aware of the impending destruction to come upon all of us soon.

You are getting sensitized...

anonymous's picture

Can't complain, Bill Belicheat deserves to be hanged along with Bush and Cheney.

Derrick's picture

Come on, sheeple! Wake the eff up! Corruption in the sporting industry isn't nearly as important as the corruption in our government. Tell Spector to get his priorities straight.

A Nuffer's picture

I said "Duh" to myself when I heard this about Arlen. Who freaking cares about a football tape on spying when our government is committing a crime by unlawful spying on the whole populus? Obviously Arlen "single bullet" does not know his ass from first base!!!

liberalNmoderation's picture

MattR @ 72:

Joe @ 65:

MattR @53:
So if Arlen is only referring to an antitrust exemption that applies to broadcasting rights, and no other aspect of the NFL's operations, does he plan to limit his investigation in some unexplained manner?

I don't see why the scope would be limited. The broadcasting exemption was created because Congress felt that it was a benefit to consumers to make the NFL available nationally. As far as I can tell there is no reason why they could not reevaluate the NFL as a whole to decide if it was still the case.

It is obviously not the case, but if it turned out that the NFL was fixing games there is no doubt that Congress could, should and would step in.

I agree....but NOW?!?! For fucks sake, we got goddamn criminals in OUR godforsaken WH!!!!
This investigation is a TOTAL waste of taxpayer money, a blatant sleight of hand maneuver!
"pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!!!"
Do the goddamn job you were fuckin elected to do asshole! GET TO IT! NOW!

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