Peter Ueberroth isn't likely to get an Air America gig any time soon. Not that he's way over on the Dark Side, but the former baseball commissioner is a big business kind of guy and a registered Republican. So, as I was watching the live announcement of what city the US Olympic Committee would pick, Chicago or Los Angeles, to bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics, imagine my surprise when he had some unexpected words of praise for Antonio R. Villaraigosa, Mayor of Los Angeles, and Hizzoner Da Mare Richard M. Daley of Chicago.
Ueberroth could have said any number of nice things about these two mayors who pretty much define the urban Democratic chief executive. What came running out of his face was this:
"If I had all the power — and sometimes people accuse me of that — I would take the map and merge the two cities, because I’ll tell you what: If you could take the mayors of these two communities and have them run our country, we would all be better off."
And, truth be told, he did look a little sheepish when he played back that sentence mentally. It took a little while for him to regain his verbal footing. I had to do some searching to find a print version of exactly the quote I heard since it's appearing in some variations--this is from the Detroit Free Press (the Tigers beat the Blue Jays by the way, 10-7) and it is exactly what I heard, with my emphasis on the zinger. Guess I can't disagree with him, and it's a helluvalot better than when Sen. Trent Lott said a very similar thing about Dixiecrat-cum-Republican Strom Thurmond.
If we are going to take Sen. Lott's words as revealing a true part of his character in an unguarded moment, I guess we'd better do the same for Ueberroth. Bad times in Bushland indeed, when Republicans bare their souls this way.
Anyway, the USOC selected Chicago so good luck Windy City!!!