Several people have e-mailed and instant messaged me the following story:
But to some Capitol Hill Republicans there is a dark cloud on the Nats’ horizon: the potential that their newly adopted home team could be purchased by billionaire financier George Soros.
Earlier this month, Soros joined an ownership bid being led by entrepreneur Jonathan Ledecky. Their group is one of more than a half-dozen angling to take over the Nats, who are currently owned by Major League Baseball.
In addition to being a well-known currency speculator and philanthropist, Soros is also known in political circles for having pumped more than $20 million in the last cycle into groups seeking to unseat President Bush and elect Democrats.
While the Soros-Ledecky group is not seen as the frontrunner to win the bidding for the Nationals, who should be awarded to their new owner at the end of the 2005 season, the very prospect that Soros could have a stake in the team is enough to irritate Congressional Republicans.
“I think Major League Baseball understands the stakes,” said Government Reform Chairman Tom Davis (R), the Northern Virginia lawmaker who recently convened high-profile steroid hearings. “I don’t think they want to get involved in a political fight.”
Davis, whose panel also oversees District of Columbia issues, said that if a Soros sale went through, “I don’t think it’s the Nats that get hurt. I think it’s Major League Baseball that gets hurt. They enjoy all sorts of exemptions” from anti-trust laws.
Indeed, Hill Republicans could potentially make life difficult for MLB in a variety of ways. In addition to being exempt from anti-trust rules, baseball is still under scrutiny over the steroid issue. The Nats, meanwhile, hope to have a publicly-funded stadium built soon, though money for that venture is expected to come through the sale of bonds rather than a federal outlay.
Still, Rep. John Sweeney (R-N.Y.), vice chairman of the Appropriations subcommittee that covers the District of Columbia budget, said if Soros buys the team and seeks public funding for the new stadium or anything else, the GOP attitude would be, “Let him pay for it.”
“We’re not going to interfere with [the sale], but from a fan’s perspective, who needs the politics?” Sweeney said.
After enough years of watching these so-called free-market, small government Republicans insert themselves into every issue imaginable, I apologize for not treating this story seriously. After observing them cheerleading Rove’s remarks, rushing to pass the Schiavo legislation, and passing the flag burning amendment as well as numerous other insults to the senses and common decency, nothing surprises me.
This is, unfortunately, the sort of small-minded nonsense and petty attempts at revenge I have grown accustomed to from the oafish loudmouths, holier-than-thou moralists, and national busybodies the Republican Congress has become. Sadly, this was just more of the same, and wholly unremarkable from the rest of the brutish behavior of late by the beltway bully boys. I am, at this point, in a state of numb disbelief.
CalDevil
Davis is an ass.
These are the type of things (out of control spending being the most offensive) that lead me to believe the House GOP has gotten a little too comfy in the majority.
Stormy70
Hello – why should the Government be paying for anything having to do with Baseball? I am against all public funding of sports stadiums. Stupid. These guys sound petty.
Mike S
I am against all public funding of sports stadiums.
Why billionaires get governments to pay hundreds of millions to build stadiums is beyond me. It brings a whole new definition to the term “welfare queens.”
I read somewhere that a group with a major Republican fundraiser is also in contntion for the purchase. Anybody think these congress critters will be complaining about them?
John Cole
There is the Washington Baseball Club, which lists Colin Powell as an investor.
More here on the three groups.
wild bird
Boot soros out of america i mean this spoil rich brat is just trying to buy his way to power i say send him to live in outer siberia
Sojourner
Wild Bird: Do you hold the same position on Bush, another “spoil rich brat… just trying to buy his way to power”?
John Cole
Sojourner-
It’s not nice to fool with mother nature.
Sojourner
I thought it was a reasonable question.
Harley
Some perspective here.
Tim F
Soros should have the same access to public money and eminent-domain land-grabs that Bush got with the Rangers. It’s hardly fair otherwise.
BTW, my dad used to say that the best way to make a small fortune in professional sports, is to start with a large fortune. God knows Soros is known for buying ahead of the curve, but I’m missing the astute business angle here.
Tim F
BTW, “wild bird” wins the WTF award for this thread. No further submissions will be considered.
Barry
The way that I heard it is that people who made their money by owning a team are rare, among team owners, in most sports. Most of the owners are wealthy people who are buying a team as something to do with their money. Like your own private 747, or island, or something.
toine
Jeez… When are the real Republicans going to stand up to these wankers and take their party back? It is just getting downright embarrassing.
Mithrandir
The fact that this is taking up any time is embarrasing. We should be more concerned about Chinese purchase of US oil companies…
Driscoll River
Why don’t the Republicans just ask their main man to step in and solve this problem?
Don
I’d say this kind of threat, for me, surpasses anything Rove or Dean has said in recent memory. “Don’t do business with this guy whose positions we dislike or we’ll hurt you.” Suddenly the comparisons between politicians and the Mafia don’t seem so unreasonable…
fatman
FWIW, judging from the grammer and punctuation (or lack thereof), I think “wildbird” is the same (suspected) troll/’bot who comments over at Wizbang under the handle “skybird”.
As for George Soros buying the Washington Nationals, the only reasons I can think of for him to do that is to raise his political profile in Washington and be an even bigger pain in the…neck than he already is. Why should the Republicans accommodate him? Or have you all forgotten about Senator Ted Kennedy (D-Chivas) and his attempts to make it illegal for Rupert Murdoch to own both a television station and a newspaper in the same news market? (which was overturned by the Supreme Court)
fatman
The news market was New York City. (Sorry I forgot to include that)