What's the difference between a baseball player and an oil company executive?

[ck4829]

For one, the latter can get away with lying!

"Bonds is now guilty of obstructing justice, one of the four charges he faced relating to the evidence he gave eight years ago to a grand jury investigating the Balco case."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2011/apr/14/barry-bonds-guilty-obstructing-justice

Lying in front of a grand jury is a crime, but isn't there another case of lying that we're forgetting about?

"A White House document shows that executives from big oil companies met with Vice President Cheney's energy task force in 2001 -- something long suspected by environmentalists but denied as recently as last week by industry officials testifying before Congress."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/15/AR2005111501842.html

But they weren't under oath, so they can't get in trouble? No. Knowingly lying to Congress, oath or not, is still a federal offense.

Weird, huh? Maybe the media and politicians that dragged this whole baseball players taking steroids thing on for so long can explain this to us.

[Stuart G]

1. Excellent...yea...not telling the truth to Congress...is a crime..

[CBGLuthier]

2. Too bad it isn't a crime for Congress to lie to US

We could empty the place of about 520 rascals.

[Scuba]

3. Shamelessly reposted. n/t

[Octafish]

4. Baseball players don't own Congress.

Oil companies have clear title.

Thank you for a great OP and analysis, ck4289!

[Recursion]

5. The baseball player gets farmed out to the minors if he doesn't perform? (nt)

[dixiegrrrrl]

6. Lying to Congress, even under oath, became crime free during the Bush Admin.

and has remained less than a misdemeanor ever since.
Once Sen.Leahy let the Bush bots walk away from contempt or Congress and perjury, back during theAttorney Gate issue, that was the end of a credible Congress.
Remember when Rove refused to even show up under a Congressional subpoena? and got away with it??

THAT is when I knew we were circling the drain.
Everything else after that was just empty suits blathering.

[al bupp]

7. The latter likely made bigger political donations

Think of it like protection money, kicking points up the ladder, so to speak.