[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 48 (Thursday, March 22, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1985-S1986]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             NFL DISCLOSURE

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I rise to speak about a disturbing 
disclosure made recently by the National Football League. Their 
investigation revealed that the New Orleans Saints had allegedly been 
operating an illegal ``bounty'' program.
  Under this bounty program, players were reportedly given significant 
sums of money in direct exchange for intentionally injuring opposing 
players, disabling them, and for having them carried off the field in 
an ambulance.
  According to reports, compensation started at $1,000 for causing an 
opponent to be ``carried off'' the field. This was called a ``cart-
off.'' The price was $1,500 for causing an opponent to be unable to 
continue the game. This was known as a ``knockout.'' These ``bounties'' 
reportedly reached high sums of money, as large as $10,000 and even 
$50,000.
  What is even more troubling is that reports suggest that these bounty 
systems might have reached far beyond the New Orleans Saints. Reports 
surfacing as a result of the NFL's investigation have indicated that 
other teams may have also been engaged in this practice.
  One former professional football player recently tweeted:

       Why is this a big deal now? Bounties have been going on 
     forever.

  Another stated:

       Prices were set on Saturday nights in the team hotel. . . . 
     We laid our bounties on opposing players. We targeted big 
     names, our sights set on taking them out of the game.

  Let me tell you why this is important and reprehensible. A spirit of 
aggressiveness and competitiveness is an integral part of many sporting 
contests, but bribing players to intentionally hurt their opponents 
cannot be tolerated. We have to put an end to this.
  Just yesterday, to its credit, the NFL announced historically stiff 
penalties for those involved in the New Orleans Saints bounty program. 
The team's head coach, general manager, former defensive coordinator, 
and assistant head coach were suspended for long periods of time. The 
team will forfeit selections in upcoming drafts and the team was fined.

  I commend the National Football League for taking swift and decisive 
action to discipline those involved in the Saints' bounty program, but 
we need to make sure this never happens again on any team, in any team 
sport. For that reason, I will be convening a hearing of the Senate 
Judiciary Committee. I spoke to Senator Pat Leahy about this this 
morning, and he has given me his permission as chairman to move 
forward. We will have a hearing and put on the record what sports 
leagues and teams at the professional and collegiate levels are doing 
to make sure there is no place in athletics for these pay-to-maim 
bounties. I want to hear the policies and practices in each of the 
major sports and collegiate sports that are being put in place, and I 
want to explore whether Federal legislation is required.
  Currently, bribery in a sporting contest is a Federal crime. It is 
illegal to carry out a scheme in interstate commerce to influence a 
sporting contest through bribery. This goes back to a law enacted 
almost 50 years ago by Senator Kenneth Keating of New York. Here is 
what he said at the time about bribery that would influence the outcome 
of a sporting contest:

       We must do everything we can to keep sports clean so that 
     the fans, and especially young people, can continue to have 
     complete confidence in the honesty of the players and the 
     contest. Scandals in the sporting world are big news, and can 
     have a devastating and shocking effect on the outlook of our 
     youth, to whom sports figures are heroes and idols.

  As the Department of Justice stated at that time, when the Federal 
law making it a crime to engage in bribery to influence the outcome of 
a sporting contest was enacted, Federal legislation was necessary to 
deal with the inadequacies and jurisdictional limitations of State law.
  Mr. President, most of us are sports fans. I would have to list my 
favorite sports as football, with baseball a close second. I know 
football is a contact sport. I still have a bum knee to show from my 
football experience in high school. Accidents will happen and injuries 
will happen. That is a part of the game. I knew it when I put on my 
uniform and went out on the field. But I never dreamed there would be 
some conspiracy, some bribery involved and some other player trying to 
intentionally hurt me or take me out of the game. That goes way beyond 
sports.
  I am heartened by the fact that many of the leaders in sports are now 
sensitized to the injuries that are being caused to players, 
particularly in the football arena. We know concussions can be 
devastating and ultimately take the life of a player. The National 
Football League and others are more and more sensitive to this 
phenomena. I commend them for this. But this disclosure involving the 
New Orleans Saints goes to an outrageous level that none of us ever 
anticipated.
  I think it is time, whether we are talking about hockey, football, 
baseball, basketball, or any collegiate team contest, that we have 
clear rules to make certain that what happened with the New Orleans 
Saints never, ever happens again.
  This hearing will invite representatives and witnesses from the major

[[Page S1986]]

sporting leagues and the NCAA. So they will have time to prepare, we 
will call the hearing after the Easter break, but I hope to have it in 
a timely fashion.
  I want fans all across America and I want players all across America 
to know that what happened in New Orleans that led to this action by 
the NFL is not going to be repeated.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a 
quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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