Skip navigation
Site powered by
Latest news:
msnbc.com: Top msnbc.com headlines: Panda diplomacy: China to give two to Canada

Congressman asks FBI to drop Clemens case

Pitcher 'has been shamed ... What is the public benefit,' Weiner asks

Image: Clemens, HardinAP
Pitcher Roger Clemens, left, talks with his lawyer Rusty Hardin during the Rockets-Nuggets NBA game in Denver on March 2.

WASHINGTON - A Democratic congressman asked the FBI on Wednesday to drop its investigation of Roger Clemens because the pitching great had suffered enough from the probe into steroid use.

Rep. Anthony Weiner, a candidate for New York mayor in 2009, said the FBI is too busy with more important crimes to spend time trying to determine if the ex-Yankees pitcher lied to Congress about taking performance enhancing substances.

“Roger Clemens has been shamed. I think the public record is replete with examples of how he did not likely tell the truth. What is the public benefit of continuing with an FBI investigation?” Weiner said.

Weiner also suggested his fellow lawmakers had gone far enough with inquiries into steroids use by professional athletes and should let professional sports league handle the matter.

“The real incentive to clean up this mess is not a governmental one,” said Weiner, a Mets fan whose district includes parts of Queens and Brooklyn.

The FBI took over the Clemens case after Congress asked the Justice Department to look into Clemens’ testimony at a Feb. 5 deposition and a Feb. 13 hearing. Weiner is not a member of the House Oversight and Government Committee, which heard from Clemens.

Clemens testified he never used steroids or human growth hormone; his former trainer testified he injected Clemens with such substances at least 16 times from 1998 to 2001.

If investigators conclude Clemens lied on critical details, he could face charges of perjury, making false statements or obstruction of justice.

In a letter to Attorney General Michael Mukasey, Weiner wrote: “Whether or not Roger Clemens may have committed perjury should not compete with real national security threats for the FBI’s time, attention and resources.”

There was no immediate comment from the Justice Department on Wednesday.

© 2011 NBC Sports.com

advertisement
More news
Image: Detroit Tigers v Los Angeles Dodgers
Getty Images
Dodgers can become power

DeMarco: Plug in a well-heeled ownership group and negotiate one of those mega-bucks TV deals that are going around, and the Dodgers could become the west coast version of the New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox.

Image: San Francisco Giants v St. Louis Cardinals
Getty Images
Castrodale: Lots of marketing potential

Castrodale: The Yankees are introducing his and her fragrances? What's next?

Interactive
Rangers Spring Baseball
Maps to spring training sites
Your guide to sites in Arizona, Florida
Slideshow
Houston Astros
  Unbreakable records in baseball
A look at the most unbreakable records in baseball including Nolan Ryan's seven no-hitters.
Slideshow
Image: Albert Pujols
  The top tools of baseball
You hear a lot about the tools of baseball, but who are the best hitters, fielders and pitchers? We break it down.

more photos

Slideshow
Image: Snee, 8, son of New York Giants player Chris Snee and head coach Coughlin's grandson plays in the confetti after the New York Giants defeated the New England Patriots in the NFL Super Bowl XLVI football game in Indianapolis
  The Week in Sports Pictures
The Giants on top of the football world, getting ready for the London Olympics and more.

more photos