Baseball and politics...

Well, the season is over for Boston but my St. Louis Cardinals are still in the post-season. Until the next playoff game starts tonight, I'm listening to my political mp3s. I should disclaim right now that I took the luck of the draw and was roomed with three Republicans and two of them are log cabin Republicans -- which does not make since being that they are voting against their best interests.

Back to baseball, St. Louis is expected to sweep the San Diego Padres tonight in San Diego. I'll be flipping over during commercials as I watch Saturday Night Live religiously. Why ESPN decided to air at that time is beyond me. Matt Morris (14-10, 4.11) takes on former Cardinal Woody Williams (9-12, 4.85) tonight at PETCO Park. Williams pitched during Game 1 of the World Series last year. Of the Cardinal pitching staff, Morris has the most games under his belt so he is a team leader--plus, he's been with the Cardinals since he was drafted in June 1995. If necessary, the Cardinals will play tomorrow afternoon, but we all know that the Cardinals will sweep the Padres.

Evan Bayh helped secure $9 million for Rolls-Royce. This will help them in the making of an engine for the Global Hawk.

"The engine produced by Hoosiers at Rolls-Royce will play a vital role in providing crucial intelligence capabilities to our troops fighting the war on terror," Senator Bayh said. "The upgraded Global Hawk will be a key asset to our ability to maintain the superiority of our war fighting abilities. At the same time, this funding will create more economic growth and job opportunities right here in Indiana."

Once again, the Senator shows trhat he cares for the troops. Here's another gesture that shows Senator Bayh supports our troops.

"As we increase security inside airports and on their immediate grounds, we also need to protect travelers from a terrorist missile threat, by equipping commercial planes with the same missile-evading technology our military planes use," Senator Bayh said. "This funding will allow the people at Crane, along with Purdue University and ATA Airlines, to develop technology that will help safeguard commercial planes from missile sensors."

The $2.5 million will be used by Crane, Purdue University and ATA Airlines in a collaborative effort to reduce the threat posed by terrorist missile threats. Researchers will develop an Infrared Suppression system to reduce the heat emitted by commercial airplanes that missiles use to lock-on to the planes. Last year, Bayh helped secure $1.3 million for Infrared Suppression.

Senator Joe Lieberman is not convinced that Julie Myers is qualified to run the Immigration and Customs Enforcement bureau. Lieberman was one of two votes against her confirmation in the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee.

Is this a Evan Bayh news day or what? The news just keeps coming in. He has introduced some legislation with Senators Chuck Schumer and Debbie Stabenow dealing with China.

In an effort to show U.S. unhappiness with the current pace of events, Sens. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., and Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., on Friday introduced a Senate resolution calling on the administration to request that the International Monetary Fund file a formal complaint charging China with manipulating its currency to gain trade advantages.

Bayh said the resolution was prompted by recent statements from IMF Managing Director Rodrigo Rato that there was no evidence China was manipulating its currency.

"The IMF, by its own rules should be investigating this problem, and my resolution will help make that happen," Bayh said.

Who is the real Jerry Kilgore? Kilgore attempted to pull a Jim Bunning by not wanting to debate Lt. Governor Tim Kaine.

This pisses me off. Why in the world did Mayor Daley allow for the Sabeel conference to take place in Chicago? Read more here.

While President Bush may not be invading Canada, that won't stop Jon Stewart from performing there.

Ohio is looking to be really competitive next year and that's just the Democratic Senate primary!

"In the national struggle between Democrats and Republicans, Ohio is ground zero," said Craig Smith, a political consultant who ran presidential campaigns for Al Gore and Joe Lieberman. He now advises Columbus Mayor Mike Coleman in his race for Ohio governor.

Hackett and Brown would like to avoid a primary. But a little tune-up election might bolster the Democrats' chances, Smith said.

"What a primary does is, the amount of national attention on Ohio will just increase if there's a competitive Senate race and a competitive gubernatorial race," he said.

Gary Schwartz heads up a new production in Seattle. You might recognize him from some of his work.

Anheuser-Busch is lobbying the government to pass the "Stop Underage Drinking Act. Write your Senators and Congressmen now and get them behind this. I'll be 21 within the next week. I hate underage drinking as much as the next person hopefully does. However, the only wording in the bill causing controversy with regards to advertisements during sporting events.

The company objects to language in the bill that calls for a ban on alcohol ads during radio and TV broadcasts of college sporting events, a staple of the beer giant's marketing efforts.

Even though the controversial language is in the bill's introduction and is not legally binding, Anheuser-Busch president August A. Busch IV has called it "misguided" and says it's "an untrue, unfair and damaging indictment of our industry."

Public interest groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving say Anheuser-Busch is too focused on its bottom line instead of real alcohol-abuse prevention.

The Stop Underage Drinking Act would fund community and college campus efforts to curb alcohol consumption, calls for a national adult-oriented ad campaign against youth drinking, and would improve coordination among federal agencies dealing with the problem.

But the alcoholic beverage industry has worked to tie the bill up in committee because of language supporting the college ad ban. They also object to a 2002 study cited in the measure that found alcohol producers ran more ads during the NCAA men's basketball tournament than during the Super Bowl, World Series, college bowl games and the National Football League's Monday Night Football broadcasts combined.

Still, I back this bill all the way whether there are ads on tv or not during sports.

Props to Congressman Ben Chandler.

Those concerns were echoed by U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler, D-6th District, the only Kentucky legislator to vote against the bill, sponsored by U.S. Rep. Richard Pombo, R-Calif.

Chandler said in an interview the Pombo bill "essentially guts" the current law, which he said has had high-profile successes.

"The bald eagle, the very symbol of this country, was saved from extinction in large extent because of the Endangered Species Act," Chandler said, adding that his opposition to the new bill is tied to his faith.

"We've got no business causing, because of our activities, the extinction of plants and animals." he said.

How anyone could vote for this bill? So much for the bald eagle...and other endangered species. Someone needs to declare their candidacy against Richard Pombo.

I'll be back momentarily.