MVN: Most Valuable Network

Barack Obama sits down with Philly Inquirer sports columnist Bob Ford (who is very pleased with the opportunity to do so) and reiterates his White Sox fandom (bad judgment), though he quickly panders to the Philly crowd:

"But since the White Sox lost, I'll go ahead and root for the Phillies now," Obama said.

Not the Tampa Bay Rays? No American League loyalty? What about Florida electoral votes? More worried about Pennsylvania?

Anyway, there's more pandering to the Philly voters. He calls Dr. J his hero:

"I could never quite get the 'fro, and I didn't have his vertical leap, either. But I did have a little finger roll," Obama said. "What I liked was not just what he did on the court, but how he acted off the court. He's a classy guy."

True, with a small hiccup. On other issues:

Best sports movie ever?

"Hoosiers."

Good answer.

Is a walk as good as a hit?

"Yes."

It's as good as a single, but not a double, triple or homer.

The DH?

"I'm not really into it."

Good answer, though your White Sox use it.

Pete Rose in the Hall of Fame?

"No, because he bet on baseball. If he had bet on football, I wouldn't care. But you don't bet on your own game."

Wrong.

Wilt or Russell?

"Russell. I've got to say that, and it's part of the lesson I learned. When I was a kid, I loved Wilt. That was my guy. As I get older, maybe because my game's more like Russell's - I can't score 100 points - I have come to appreciate Russell more."

Uh oh, Barack, Wilt is a Philly guy.

You also play tennis well. Federer or Nadal?

"Federer. Smooth guy."

I don't care.

Does a good defense always beat a good offense?

"Sometimes a good offense can beat a good defense, but I'll put my money on a good defense every time. You've got to have both, though. Maybe it's because I'm thinking about my Bears, and we haven't had an offense for 20 years. If we could just get a quarterback and a guy who could just catch the ball, we might do some damage."

As a reminder: Colts 29, Bears 17.

Labels: Barack Obama, Bob Ford, Chicago White Sox, Philadelphia Inquirer