Say It Ain't So, Junior

(from Tuesday, March 18)

In a complete shocker, Marty managed to show no noticeable bias when reporting a piece of news that may have political implications for years to come.

South Africa, take a deep breath. The cavalry is coming. Condoleezza Rice has tapped Ken Griffey Jr. to lead a promotional tour that will presumably bring baseball and American values to the southern tip of the dark continent, a place where not too long ago a black man with a bat in his hands might as well have been asking to be shot.

Sounds like a relatively non-partisan endeavor and Griffey Jr. is a natural diplomat.

Of course, there is no such thing as an appointment from the Bush administration that doesn’t result from nepotism or cronyism. Brace yourself for the ugly truth: Ken Griffey Jr. plays golf with George Bush’s brother, Jeb Bush, the former governor and vote thief of Florida, a man who systematically disenfranchised tens of thousands of black voters in the 2000 election. The only way Jeb Bush should be on a golf course with Junior is as his caddy, but alas Jeb and Junior are apparently good pals. As Marty reported, Griffey good-naturedly asked Jeb if he’d have a job for him in his administration when he’s president. In turn, the ever-jocular Jeb asked for a gig in a Griffey administration – which we can only hope is a more likely scenario. One more Bush in charge and this little experiment in democracy will be effectively over.

Of course, it should never be a shock when anyone worth over $100 million goes to the dark side. But Junior? I though you were better than that.