The following are excerpts from editorials compiled from 25
newspapers in 18 MLB markets:
ANAHEIM: ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER: "The President and
Congress should keep their mitts out of the baseball industry"
(ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 2/7).
ATLANTA: ATLANTA JOURNAL: "The President has no authority,
and Congress has no business, in this dispute" (ATLANTA JOURNAL,
2/9).
BALTIMORE: Baltimore SUN: "Perhaps a presidential gun held
to their heads would induce a voluntary settlement. But the gun
Mr. Clinton is brandishing has no bullets and both sides know it"
(Baltimore SUN, 2/9). WASHINGTON TIMES: "Let W.J. Usery ...
continue to argle-bargle with the major-league gang. There's no
legitimate federal role involved" (WASHINGTON TIMES, 2/10).
WASHINGTON POST: "This a labor dispute in a non-essential
business, and it's up to the contending parties, not the federal
government, to work it out" (WASHINGTON POST, 2/10).
BAY AREA, CA: SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS: "We won't propose a
solution to the baseball strike. We do have an opinion on who
else has no business playing umpire: the President and Congress"
(SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 2/9).
BOSTON: BOSTON GLOBE: "Enough! Let no more energy be
wasted on these egos, especially not in the halls of Congress"
(BOSTON GLOBE, 2/9). BOSTON HERALD: "Though Congress shouldn't
force a solution ... it should revoke the owners' anti-trust
exemption" (BOSTON HERALD, 2/9).
CHICAGO: CHICAGO TRIBUNE: "The first bad idea was for the
President to involve himself in this affair in the first place"
(CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 2/9). CHICAGO SUN-TIMES: "The President ought
not ask the fans -- as citizens -- put up with even more by
shoving their government into an intrusive, no-win situation"
(CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 2/9).
CINCINNATI: CINCINNATI POST: "Americans do not have a
constitutional right to entertainment, and that's reason enough
for Congress to stay out of the baseball strike -- as the White
House should have" (CINCINNATI POST, 2/9).
CLEVELAND: Cleveland PLAIN DEALER: "Congress should have
much more important things on its mind than the future of a game.
Americans, meanwhile, will find a way to survive without major
league baseball" (PLAIN DEALER, 2/9).
DETROIT: The DETROIT FREE PRESS is against Congress passing
binding arbitration legislation: "If lawmakers want to nudge the
parties toward an agreement, a more appropriate action would be
the repeal of the major leagues' antiquated exemption" (DETROIT
FREE PRESS, 2/9).
HOUSTON: HOUSTON CHRONICLE: "Baseball's fracture has to be
healed by baseball interests themselves. That may be sad and
painful. But don't make a federal case out of baseball's
rhubarb" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 2/9).
LOS ANGELES: L.A. TIMES: "Congress should get off the bench
and make a play" (L.A. TIMES, 2/9).
MIAMI: Ft. Lauderdale SUN-SENTINEL: "Save congressional
involvement for real crises -- like a steel strike or lock-out
during a time of war or severe economic depression -- not for a
labor dispute that puts one set of millionaires against another"
(Ft. Lauderdale SUN-SENTINEL, 2/9).
MILWAUKEE: MILWAUKEE SENTINEL: "The spectacle of a
president intervening in a sports dispute about which fewer
Americans seem to care is just that: a spectacle" (MILWAUKEE
SENTINEL, 2/10). MILWAUKEE JOURNAL: "Clinton's decision to seek
congressional action ... is a useful initiative that could help
break the stubborn impasse" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL, 2/8).
MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL: ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS: "Baseball is
show business, not an essential industry. Ultimately, owners and
player should resolve their own differences, while the nation's
leaders shoulder more critical duties" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS,
2/8). Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE: "It isn't Congress' job to
settle the baseball strike. ... It is time, however, for Congress
to take indirect action by doing what it probably should have
done decades ago: remove the antitrust exemption" (STAR TRIBUNE,
2/9).
NEW YORK: N.Y. TIMES argues Congress is not the place to
solve the dispute: "There may be some merit in a broad
Congressional redefinition of the rules under which baseball
operates": eliminating the exemption (N.Y. TIMES, 2/9). NEWSDAY
is against the Clinton legislation: "We've advocated removing the
antitrust exemption -- there's no justification for it and it
would put more pressure on the owners to negotiate in good faith"
(NEWSDAY, 2/9).
PHILADELPHIA: PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER: "Trust us esteemed
leaders of Congress, few voters in America will blame you for
bending the sacred principles of free enterprise just a bit to
give them their game back. Get it done" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER,
2/8).
SAN DIEGO: SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE commends Clinton for his
efforts but notes there is "no compelling national interest in
lawmakers' forcing these spoiled millionaires to stop their
bickering" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 2/9).
SEATTLE: SEATTLE TIMES: "Congress does not need to force a
solution to the Major League Baseball strike. ... Nothing says
negotiators have to listen to a president, but to do so
courteously and seriously is the American custom, just like
paying attention to that song they play before every game"
(SEATTLE TIMES, 2/9).
