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By GREG BISHOP
Published: March 9, 2008
Senator Arlen Specter said Saturday that he doubted the N.F.L. would ever talk to Matt Walsh, the former New England video assistant who may have information about the Patriots’ spying tactics.
“I’d like to issue a challenge to the commissioner to make public the extensive exchange of correspondence between the league’s lawyers and Walsh’s lawyers,” Specter, a Republican from Pennsylvania, said in a phone interview after reviewing that correspondence.
Specter was more expansive than he was Friday, when he said a memo Commissioner Roger Goodell sent last week to the competition committee had contradicted Goodell’s playing down any advantage the Patriots may have gained from spying. The memo was a proposal to the committee that would strengthen the league’s oversight on rules and Goodell’s powers to penalize violators.
Lawyers for the league and Walsh have exchanged proposals the past few weeks.
“Any objective or accurate reading of the correspondence would show the N.F.L. is trying to discourage Walsh from coming forward,” Specter said. “Especially the requirement in the letter, where the N.F.L. calls for the destruction of whatever Walsh turns over without any provision for me or anyone else to see it.”
Goodell’s memo contained a five-point plan, which included provisions for teams to report suspected or actual violations of league rules, and a reduction in the burden of proof he needed to hand out discipline.
“The commissioner doesn’t need new rules for the authority to impose penalties for prior misconduct,” Specter said. “There is no statute of limitations there. If he’s really serious, he ought to do it on his own now. It has to be identified and publicly so you can correct misconduct in the future.”
Specter has long questioned the N.F.L.’s handling of the case in which the Patriots were caught filming the Jets’ defensive signals, fined $750,000 and docked a first-round draft pick. The league destroyed all tapes and notes from that investigation. The N.F.L said Friday that there was no news to report on the Walsh proposals, and that the league still wanted to talk to him.
“We need to hear from Walsh,” Specter said. “Those letters ought to be in the public domain. I’m challenging the commissioner to do that.”
By GREG BISHOP
Published: March 9, 2008
Senator Arlen Specter said Saturday that he doubted the N.F.L. would ever talk to Matt Walsh, the former New England video assistant who may have information about the Patriots’ spying tactics.
“I’d like to issue a challenge to the commissioner to make public the extensive exchange of correspondence between the league’s lawyers and Walsh’s lawyers,” Specter, a Republican from Pennsylvania, said in a phone interview after reviewing that correspondence.
Specter was more expansive than he was Friday, when he said a memo Commissioner Roger Goodell sent last week to the competition committee had contradicted Goodell’s playing down any advantage the Patriots may have gained from spying. The memo was a proposal to the committee that would strengthen the league’s oversight on rules and Goodell’s powers to penalize violators.
Lawyers for the league and Walsh have exchanged proposals the past few weeks.
“Any objective or accurate reading of the correspondence would show the N.F.L. is trying to discourage Walsh from coming forward,” Specter said. “Especially the requirement in the letter, where the N.F.L. calls for the destruction of whatever Walsh turns over without any provision for me or anyone else to see it.”
Goodell’s memo contained a five-point plan, which included provisions for teams to report suspected or actual violations of league rules, and a reduction in the burden of proof he needed to hand out discipline.
“The commissioner doesn’t need new rules for the authority to impose penalties for prior misconduct,” Specter said. “There is no statute of limitations there. If he’s really serious, he ought to do it on his own now. It has to be identified and publicly so you can correct misconduct in the future.”
Specter has long questioned the N.F.L.’s handling of the case in which the Patriots were caught filming the Jets’ defensive signals, fined $750,000 and docked a first-round draft pick. The league destroyed all tapes and notes from that investigation. The N.F.L said Friday that there was no news to report on the Walsh proposals, and that the league still wanted to talk to him.
“We need to hear from Walsh,” Specter said. “Those letters ought to be in the public domain. I’m challenging the commissioner to do that.”
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