By Dylan Butler
“Make no mistake, when I told Senator Mitchell that I injected Roger Clemens with performance-enhancing drugs, I told the truth,” McNamee said in a powerful opening statement. “I told the truth about steroids and human growth hormone. I injected those drugs into the body of Roger Clemens at his direction.”Mitchell is the former Senator from Maine who was employed by Major League Baseball to investigate drug use in the game.In the Feb. 13 hearing of the House of the Committee on Oversight and Government in Washington, the former catcher at Archbishop Molloy and St. John's University also testified that he injected Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte and former Yankees second baseman Chuck Knoblauch with HGH.In sworn depositions, both Pettite and Knoblauch backed up McNamee's claims. The Breezy Point native served as a strength and conditioning coach with the Yankees from 2000 to 2001.”I told the investigators I injected three people – two of whom I know confirmed my account,” McNamee said. “The third is sitting at this table.”Seated at a wooden desk and separated by Mitchell report lawyer Charles Scheeler, the third witness asked to testify in front of the committee, McNamee and Clemens were both grilled by members of Congress for 4 1/2 hours.McNamee, a former New York City police officer, was repeatedly called a drug dealer by U.S. Rep. Chris Shays (R-Conn.) and his credibility was called into question by several Republicans because McNamee admittedly lied to investigators about a sexual battery case in St. Petersburg, Fla., in 2001 and did not make truthful statements about steroids to various journalists before the Mitchell report.”This is really disgusting,” U.S. Rep. Dan Burton (R-Ind.) said. “You're here as a sworn witness. You're here to tell the truth. You're here under oath, and yet we have lie after lie after lie after lie, of where you've told this committee and the people of this country that Roger Clemens did things – I don't know what to believe. I know one thing I don't believe and that's you.”McNamee also provided photos of used syringes and bloody gauze that he claims is evidence Clemens took performance-enhancing drugs in 2001. McNamee said he kept the alleged evidence, because he never completely trusted Clemens.Clemens, who has repeatedly denied McNamee's allegations and is suing his former trainer for defamation, was also questioned by members of Congress. In particular, the star pitcher fielded a number of questions about Pettitte's testimony that Clemens told him about his HGH use.Clemens said Pettitte “misremembered” what he said, claiming it was his wife, Debbie, who was injected by McNamee with HGH.”It's hard to believe you, sir,” said U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.). “I hate to say that. You're one of my heroes. But it's hard to believe.”When the hearing finally came to an end, the one thing that members of the committee could agree on was that either Clemens or McNamee was not telling the truth.”They don't disagree on a phone call or one meeting,” committee chairman Harold Waxman (D-Calif.) said. “If Mr. McNamee is lying, he has acted inexcusably and he has made Mr. Clemens an innocent victim. If Mr. Clemens isn't telling the truth, then he is acting shamefully and has smeared Mr. McNamee. I don't think there is anything in between.””Someone is lying in spectacular fashion,” added U.S. Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va).That may lead to a Justice Department investigation, similar to the one waged against Major League Baseball home run king Barry Bonds, who was indicted for perjury and obstruction of justice in November for telling a federal grand jury he did not knowingly use performance-enhancing drugs.However, McNamee's lawyers speculated last week that President George W. Bush could pardon Clemens, because of the player's friendship with Bush's father, former president George H.W. Bush.Reach Sports Editor Dylan Butler by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or call 718-229-0300, Ext. 143.
