With the election 3 weeks behind us, a new administration building their cabinet and Senator McCain’s forthcoming meeting with President-elect Obama to discuss a way to ensure that the United States has an efficient and effective government to represent it, one thing remains on the minds of every American from Bangor to Wasilla:  When will Sarah Palin go away already?

The election has not even been in our memories for a month and the former Vice Presidential candidate has held numerous press conferences, appeared on several different news shows, given out a handful of one on one interviews and created a media frenzy at the usually mild-mannered Republican Governors Conference in Miami this past week.  It is quite clear on all political fronts that Governor Palin is choosing to milk her 15 minutes of fame for all it’s worth as she positions herself to make a run for the presidency in 2012.  But of all her many, many flaws, one thing in particular has always “grinded my gears.”  The term “Hockey Mom.”

While trying to identify with the American people, Governor Palin has used this sports reference on many occasions and adopted the bravado of a “working class, Hockey Mom” as she campaigned around the United States.  She then started referring to the people who live in between the East and West coasts as the “only Americans, full of hockey moms and dads.”   Hockey, Governor Palin?  Hockey?

Now I don’t want to sound like a traditionalist, but If I were running for a major office in the United States I would certainly try to identify with the people by using a sport that was actually American.  Football, baseball, basketball and yes…even youth soccer moms would have all sufficed in this context.

By trying to connect with the people on a personal level, what Governor Palin really did was show the country that she is actually a bit out of the loop.  If you break down the country geographically, the Northeast has an extremely large amount of children and teens playing youth soccer and baseball.  When you move down to the Southern and Mid-Continental States states, youth Football is king.  And as you venture out west, the same formula is applied, except the fact that out there even volleyball is more popular than hockey.

In no way am I trying to insult hockey fans, I just believe that calling the blue collar voters of the United States “hockey parents” was a simple microcosm of the cluelessness of the Republican Party.  Perhaps her advisors should have noted that besides her frozen home state of Alaska as well as Goron Bombey’s territory of District 6 in Minnesota, no one really identifies with the term “hockey mom.”  There is a reason the NHL is the lowest rated league of the Big 4.  Could this be a possible reason why McCain lost to the basketball playing Barack Obama?  I’d like to think so.

As far as I am concerned, Governor Palin could not be more birdbrained about her “real America” if she tried.  I also believe it is time that she simply fades away.  Either that or do Playboy.  She would have my endorsement for either option.

As I sit on the front porch of my house listening to the cheers of the high school football stadium that rests less then a hundred yards from my home, I cannot help but to feel a sense of nostalgia and longing for those blissful, care-free days.  Sitting in the stands with my friends, laughing and smiling while we cheer on our other friends as they smash the opponent all over the gridiron while simultaneously making plans for the post-game party.  It didn’t matter if we had won or lost, everyone was at those parties letting the pseudo-worries of high school melt away as we stared wide-eyed into future endeavors such as college, careers and inevitable success.

In the economic climate we find ourselves in now, it is easy to look back at what was and feel a sense of longing.  With corporate lay-offs on the rise, the unpredictability of a roller coaster stock market, and unemployment rates the highest they have been in 25 years, our generation is feeling the toll of an uncertain future that can certainly be defined as Depression-esque.  Add those happy thoughts to the already cut-throat nature of the Sport Business Industry and us 20-somethings find ourselves in quite the unenviable predicament.

But as Hyman Roth so eloquently stated in the immortal Godfather II:  “This is the business we’ve chosen…”

And as us “newbees” of the business duck and weave our way to the top, the grizzled veterans are also making preparations to combat this crisis as well as forge ahead to accustom themselves with the upcoming administration’s new policies.

It will take sometime to fully understand and appreciate the effect President-elect Obama’s mandates will have on the sporting industry, but we can certainly speculate.  As Lester Munson of ESPN reported, Obama’s tax increase will have a significant effect on team owners and players, slow the sale of professional teams and increase the power of the player unions.  The latter is a no-brainer since democrats are traditionally pro-union, but with the impending tax increase, will owners have to start paying their athletes more?  And if so, will they then go as far as to raise ticket and concession prices to cope with the rising expenses?  One thing is for sure, as we businessmen try to gauge the effect this administration will have on our future, our jobs and our wallets, it is the most important part of the sporting industry that is going to be lampooned the most…the fans.

But hey, I am not a pessimist.  I truly believe that if you work hard enough you will be able to achieve anything you would like.  Even in the hardest of times, that is the creed that America is founded upon.  A common ground is always found between politics and sports, that is the beauty of it.  And it is that promise of a new day that gives myself, and hopefully all you aspiring sports professionals, the hope to not give up that dream.

But like I said before, it is certainly easy to look back with longing…

The Pittsburgh Pirates announced Tuesday that they have put a freeze on season-ticket prices and offered an interest-free payment plan. Arizona Diamondbacks CEO Jeff Moorad says his club has lost a corporate sponsorship with their ballpark pool. The San Diego Padres, general manager Kevin Towers said, are braced to cut payroll to $40 million.

Maybe the Yankees, Mets, and White Sox will survive the economic storm unscathed, but smaller market teams may take a big hit.

Besides injecting their persuasive words into negotiations to sway owners to give up more bucks in a hurting economy, agents are looking to what the future may hold in taxes now that Obama has been declared the next President of the United States.  Obama would like to raise the top federal income tax rate from 35% to 39.6%.  At this point, it is merely a wish.  There is no knowing whether such a plan ever goes into effect.  If the tax rate were to be increased for the next fiscal year, then signing bonuses paid before Jan. 1 should not be taxed at the higher rate.  Thus, some agents are thinking about getting their free-agents into an established uniform earlier this time around due to potential tax breaks over signing later on.

My thoughts are that the teams who notoriously spend money will continue to do so, while the Marlins, Rays, Royals, etc. keep their low payrolls.  The real change may be seen with those clubs that spend somewhere in the middle.  If sponsorships and/or ticket sales go down, expect those teams to cut salaries.  However, I do not see teams adopting such measures proactively.  Instead, I think that any salary cuts will be based off of lower figures once they start rolling in next year (if numbers are indeed down at all).  As far as the federal income tax rate, it should be interesting to see if free-agents tend to sign earlier this year due to the potential of a raise in rate by the new Democratic administration.

On July 4th, 1776, the city of Philadelphia was ground zero for the experiment that was to be known as American Democracy; a beautiful idea that would give the people of this new society a voice to be heard, a haven to practice religion freely, and the unprecedented opportunity to elecPt their new leader on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November every four years.  The people of Philadelphia could not even wait for the ink to dry on the the Declaration of Independence before they were lining the streets, shooting muskets in the air, and marching towards revolution to rid themselves of the tyranny of King George.

232 years later, Philadelphians are once again amassed in the streets to celebrate their freedom from an entity that makes King George look like George Constanza.  His name is “King Championship Drought the 25th.”  And rest easy, Philadelphia, because of your beloved Phillies, he is now in the stockade heading back to Buffalo where he belongs.

But with one of the most important elections of the past 40 years a mere day away, it is hard not to appreciate the irony of the World Series trophy being hoisted in the city that birthed the United States of America on the eve of such a historic decision.  And though theoretically they should be on polar opposite ends of the spectrum, it is also hard not to appreciate the direct correlation between the sporting world and the political arena.

Whether it be Athens vs. Sparta, Louis vs. Shmelling, or the United States vs. the USSR, sports and politics have found a unique, common bond within each other to cross-promote the inherent passions from one discipline to the other.  And why shouldn’t they?  On the international front, sports can unify people from different walks of life to find a belief in one common goal and transplant the masked contempt for another country by letting the players on the field do it for them.  If the players on the field play well and win, it is not only that team that wins, it is that entire country.  A feeling of superiority comes with that victory as well.  This is so prevalent during the Euro Cup, that the head of the European Union really could, and if it were up to me, should be appointed by which country wins the tournament.

Domestically, Politicians use sports as a way to connect with the people.  While in Western Pennsylvania last week, Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin congratulated the audience on the Philadelphia Phillies World Series victory.  She was in Western Pennsylvania.  She was then thoroughly booed and was made to walk the plank by Pirates fans.  On the other side of the isle, Senator Obama was quoted that he was rooting for the Phillies while campaigning in Philadelphia.  However, as he was campaigning in Tampa Bay, Senator Obama was quoted that he was rooting for the Rays.  Hmm.  I am all for using sports and sports franchises to form a common bond with the locals on the campaign trail, but by doing this the candidate is just making a mockery of the city itself.  Maybe Giulliani had the right idea.

But when all is said and done, the Phillies will be getting their rings and the election is coming to a head.  Is a championship of American’s Pastime in the revolutionary city for one of the game’s oldest clubs a sign that Americans need to “conserve” their past?  Or will the young Phillies faces represent the fact that the pastime is finally coming into the 21st century harboring the “change” we need?  Whatever the case may be, this fact remains the same: Sports, Politics and Women are the only three things that can bring men that much joy and that much sorrow.

Basketball

• Josh Childress answers some questions about playing overseas [Josh Childress: I'll become a better player here in Europe].
• So much for parity [NBA Season--Which Teams Really Have A "Final" Chance?].
• Will he live up to the tremendous hype surrounding him? [Bynum agrees to four-year extension worth $58M]
• Does he need a ring to become a true king? [LeBron James Needs NBA Title To Be Marketing King].
• When will the truth come out?  Are NBA teams profiting or not? [NBA Owners May Let CBA Lapse After 2010-2011 Season].

Football

• This Saturday, take a seat and watch the fastest man in pads tear up the Georgia defense [Fastest Man in Pads May Be Florida’s Tailback].

Baseball

• An example of a large investment with little return [Adam Loewen takes the money and runs].

“I’d rather give it to charity than to him [Barack Obama].  If you do it this year or you do it next year, the difference is humongous because of the taxes.”

Huizenga was referencing the selling of the remainder of his shares to Stephen Ross.  He wants to speed up the negotiations due to an impending capital gains tax hike if Obama takes the White House.  Huizenga represents wealthy America, who notoriously vote for Republicans due to the party’s inclination to keep taxes low on the rich.  It seems like Huizenga is already projecting the Obama camp as the winners and is looking to unload his shares before taxes rise.  He clearly would rather give the money from such a sale to charity (or maybe his family) over passing it on to the government.

Usually one thing that athletes and owners agree upon is who they will vote for in an election.  Both entities tend to qualify for entry into the higher tax brackets.  It is very interesting to see how many athletes are switching away from Conservatism to publicly supporting the Democratic candidate, Obama.  How many owners will be bucking the trend to vote Republican?

• Barry Bonds has a Blackberry that works. If you are an MLB GM, he will wait for your call, even if it comes midway through the 2008 season [Bonds: 'I'm not going to retire'].
• DeAngelo Hall is going from one troubled team to another, but will surely enjoy his paycheck [Source: After trade to Raiders, Hall to get seven-year, $70 million deal].
• Unlike Hall, Les Miles decided to stick around his old team (albeit a much better team), and signed a new deal to coach LSU at a price of at least $3.751 million a year for 5 years [LSU, Miles agree on restructured five-year deal].
• Add the GM of the Cleveland Indians to the vocal sports community backing Obama [Showing support for Obama].
• Right alongside Scott Boras, Drew Rosenhaus is constantly covered by the media [Rosenhaus helps clients get dream and green].
• Leigh Steinberg continues his mission to make the world more green [Meet Minneapolis Names Leigh Steinberg Keynote Speaker for Annual Meeting].
• Interested in finding out where the AP Top 25 college basketball teams’ coaches publicly donate their money? [Top 25 BB coaches donate to… more hoops.]

This week’s featured post is Paul Schackman’s 3rd installment of his 2008 NFL Mock Draft. You can find it on the right hand column by clicking Featured.

Leigh Steinberg, known as an agent who is always bucking the general trend (Jerry McGuire was supposedly based on his life), has also publicly announced his support for Senator Obama. In fact, he has created a group called Athletes for Obama with the help of Reggie Bush and Charles Barkley.

No matter if you think an athlete or agent should publicly support a candidate or drive people to vote for a particular person, I think we can all agree that it is worthwhile for people in high positions to have a goal of trying to broadly influence people to vote (not specifically who to vote for). That is why I particularly liked the way that Oden ended his post:

If the person I vote for wins it’s gonna be because of my one little vote, at least that’s what I’m gonna think. I think everyone should think that way. This will be my first presidential election to participate in as a voter and I hope that you younger voters will get involved. I think that our votes can really influence the outcome so go out, register and vote for who you think is the best candidate to be the best leader for this country and make sure you and your family will feel good about the new president that is elected in November.

I also urge all of this site’s readers to stay up to date with the Presidential race and vote this November. This will be the first opportunity for many of you to vote in a Presidential election. Make your voice heard. Each vote counts.

It’s well known that the vast majority of PGA Tour players are rank-and-file Republicans. Or at the very “worst,” closet independents. Over the years, some players have been more vocal than others about their political leanings. No one will ever forget in 1993, for example, when Ryder Cup team member Paul Azinger (this year’s U.S. captain) initially refused to attend a pre-match invitation to the White House from President Bill Clinton before the team flew to England. While part of Azinger’s problem was supposedly Clinton’s proposed tax increase for high-income wage earners, it later came out that his real beef centered around the fact that the President had dodged the Vietnam draft.

It’s no surprise, therefore, that informal polls on Tour driving ranges so far have John McCain with a comfortable popularity lead. But Tiger Woods, for one, divulged recently in Dubai that he may be leaning towards Democratic candidate Barack Obama, believing him to be an “inspiration.” Over at Chris Lewis’ blog you can read the entirety of Tiger’s press conference response.

Speaking of Woods and Obama, Golfworld’s Jaime Diaz compares ‘Obamamania’ to pre-1997 Tigermania, when “Woods was still mostly promise, although there was a certainty and presence and sense of destiny to the young man, the kind Obama increasingly has demonstrated in his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination. Both manias reflect an America willing to trust its gut more than its head. But tellingly, with Woods there was no second-guessing, and the same seems to be true with Obama.” In the same vain, SI’s Michael Bamberger wonders whether Woods, “simply by conducting his business the way he does, [has] helped make the country more tolerant?”

Ironically, some think that Tiger may be destined for the political stage himself. When his AT&T tournament chose the D.C. located Congressional as its annual venue, “Woods revived speculation that, someday, he might carry his popularity and success into the political arena, following the paths of such athletes turned lawmakers as Democrat Bill Bradley and Republican Jack Kemp.” Hey, even Wood’s late father, Earl, thought as much. In 1996, Woods predicted to Sports Illustrated that his son’s reach would extend well beyond golf: “Tiger will do more than any other man in history to change the course of humanity,” he surmised.

A Tiger presidency would be interesting, as would the “race” to be Tiger’s running mate. You’d have to think either “Stevie” (caddie Steve Williams) and/or “Steiney” (IMG agent Mark Steinberg) would have the inside track.

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The New Chairman: Zach Johnson

Tour players had another election on their minds recently, and at the end of the day, it was Zach Johnson who earned the mandate. Masters champion, and Titleist ambassador, Johnson defeated Brett Quigley and Rich Beem for the role of chairman of the Players Advisory Council. The election means Johnson will move up to the policy board next year. Johnson is represented by SFX Golf’s Brad Buffoni.

As Tim Rosaforte explains, “PGA Tour members rely on the Player Advisory Council (PAC) and the PGA Tour Policy Board to represent them on issues involving [commissioner Tim] Finchem and his staff. The PAC, a 16-player committee, serves as a filter to the policy board, which is comprised of four players (Stewart Cink, Brad Faxon, Joe Ogilvie and David Toms) and four volunteer independent directors, all of whom are among the nation’s most prominent businessmen and one member from the PGA of America. The latter includes Hearst Corporation president Vic Ganzi, who has replaced retiring Richard Ferris of United Airlines as chairman; Ed Whitacre, the former chairman and CEO of AT&T; and financial executives John McCoy of Bank One and Ken Thompson of Wachovia. The PGA of America director is Brian Whitcomb, the association’s president. The Player directors are consulted but have little input in the appointment of independent directors. This nine-man council sits at the right hand of Finchem and governs the tour.

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A PGA Players’ Union?

Even with the presence of the PAC and the policy board, there have been grumblings recently—mainly in relation to the Tour’s newly adopted drug policy—that players’ voices are being drowned out, or even outright ignored by Finchem. As I blogged last week, the phrase “collective bargaining” is now even being tossed around on Tour driving ranges.

With that in mind, Golfweek reports that All-Pro Sports & Entertainment Principal Peter Schaffer “has been dialing his agent brethren in an effort to form the PGA Tour’s equivalent of the [NFLPA], with the NFLPA willing to bankroll the venture in the early stages.”

Schaffer, who represents PGA Tour member Jonathan Kaye and “more than a dozen current and former NFL players … has been calling in an effort to lure a reputable, highly ranked player to battle the drug issue.” One agent contacted by Schaffer quipped, “It’s the same reason why any union would try to get people involved in other unions — to help with their own negotiations. Let’s say the golfers unionize and they get a perk from the PGA Tour they don’t have in the NFL or NHL. The NFLPA can then go back and say, ‘Hey, we want this, too, or we’re walking.’ It’s kind of like the way the mob unionized in the ’60s.”

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FedEx Adjustments

As expected, the PGA Tour has already adjusted its FedEx Cup points system. The changes will allegedly allow for more leaderboard movement during the playoffs.

The policy board passed a number of measures during a meeting this past week at the Honda Classic. There will be two changes to the FedEx Cup points structure. One, the 144 players who qualify for the Cup will have their point gaps narrowed. For example, the gap between first and second will now be 500 points, down from 1,000 last year, with smaller proportional gaps down to 144. Also, players will receive 2,000 more points in each playoff finish position, which it is hoped will result in more player movement between events. The Tour estimates the changes would have doubled the number of players mathematically capable of winning the FedEx Cup during last year’s finale at the Tour Championship.

Other changes announced this week: the field for the Children’s Miracle Network Classic was reduced from 132 to 128 to accommodate daylight hours for the early November tournament. The Memorial was expanded from 105 to 120 players as part of the Tour’s goal to keep at least 120 players in limited-field events. The Frys.com Open, a Fall Series event staged in Scottsdale from ‘07-09, will move to a course in San Jose called The Institute that is owned by San Jose-based Fry’s. The invitational event will be called The Institute Championship.

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Another Golf Channel Gaffe

Between Dottie Pepper’s Solheim hiccup, Kelly Tilghman’s unadvised attempt to put Don Imus to shame, and now Nick Faldo’s blatant pimping of TaylorMade, you wonder whether or not Tim Finchem is regretting the 15-year deal the Tour inked last year for the Golf Channel to become the exclusive cable television home for the PGA Tour.

During the morning 18 of last Sunday’s Accenture WGC match play final between Tiger Woods and Stewart Cink (both Swoosh sponsored), Faldo, once a hawker of Nike himself, went out of his way to prop up the TaylorMade golf ball while denigrating Nike’s ball as being one only for “certain players with high skill levels.” Specifically, Faldo referred to the test results in Golf Magazine’s February cover story “Revealed: The Best Ball For You!” that showed that under launch conditions meant to replicate the swing of the average player (90-mph swing speed, 13.75-degree launch angle, 2,900 rpm) the TaylorMade TP Black produced 259.1 yards of carry and roll compared with 239.1 yards for the Nike One Platinum. Faldo then said that the Nike ball “fell out of the sky.”

Faldo’s seemingly off-the-cuff remarks came right on the heels of the announcement of the beginning of a long-term relationship with the TaylorMade-adidas Golf Company in a role that will touch on marketing, product innovation and creation, product testing, player evaluation and more. Ironically, Nike equipment has now been bashed not only for being inferior (see Phil Mickelson’s comments a few years back), but also for being so advanced that only a select few should bother using it. So which is it? No comment yet from Tiger, and don’t expect one.

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No More Tabasco, Please

According to various reports, Woody Austin will no longer be wearing his trademark, colorful, scenic Tabasco shirts this year. Rather, the company that makes the hot sauce (The McIlhenny Company) grew tired of the “media ripping my shirts,” Austin said. “They said it was too much of a negative on their brand.”

Austin, for one, claims that he never understood all the critiques from the “fashion police” in the first place, and thought that the bright colors showed off his personality.

“How can I be so bad off?” Austin said. “I’m not the one showing up in lavender purple pants and I don’t show up with giant white belts and burgundy colored shirts and Fedora hats. I don’t show up with a tie. I don’t understand how a fun, colorful shirt is so bad as opposed to all that.”

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Other News

* Indianapolis Colts Owner Jim Irsay has signed a deal to sponsor LPGA Tour player Becky Lucidi, who will display the Colts’ logo on her golf bag, shirt and visor (Colts). The Indianapolis Star’s Mike Chappell reports that Irsay will “pick up the tab for all of Lucidi’s overhead expenses: travel, accommodations, meals.” Irsay publicist Myra Borshoff Cook: “That basically allows Becky to concentrate fully on the tour. She doesn’t have to worry about her week-to-week expenses.”

* Globalization advocate Thomas Friedman argues that the world is flat. So too, it seems, is the LPGA Tour, as evidenced by the influx of Asians in particular (primarily from women’s golf crazed South Korea), and also a world rankings list that starts off Mexico, Sweden, Norway and Australia, before finally hitting the U.S. (Paula Creamer). Geoff Shackelford blogs on Tour commissioner and “Brand Lady” Carolyn Bivens’ reponse to this relatively newfound phenomenon.

* Three of Golf Digest’s Campus Insider Ryan Herrington’s weekly Top 5 men’s collegiate teams are from the SEC (Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia), although the deepest team in the country (and my favorite to win the NCAA) is still the second-ranked UCLA Bruins, whose JV (blue) squad would probably rank in the Top 20 by itself.

* In an event where only 13 players finished under par, the world’s number one ranked female Lorena Ochoa opened with rounds of 66, 65 and 69 to take an eight-stroke lead over Annika Sorenstam and Paula Creamer, cruising to a Tiger-like eleven-stroke victory in the HSBC Women’s Champions in Singapore this past weekend. Ochoa (pictured) missed a chance to break Cindy Mackey’s 72-hole LPGA record for margin of victory of 14, but topped her own mark of 10 in the 2006 Tournament of Champions. For more on the HSBC tournament, and other LPGA news, check out Hound Dog’s impressive, in-depth LPGA blog.

* As part of a clothing deal with Reebok, 2003 British Open champion Ben Curtis wears the NFL colors of the local team in whichever town he’s playing. Thus, this past week Curtis was appropriately clad in a Miami Dolphins shirt and visor, as PGA National is about an hour north of the Dolphins’ home field. Curtis was recruited to IMG by Jay Danzi, who later was wriggled away by Wasserman Media Group to head its golf division. But thus far Curtis has remained under IMG’s representation.

* Over at Gaylord Sports Management in Scottsdale, the client list continues to grow. Last month alone Gaylord signed John Riegger (PGA Tour player), Charlotte Mayorkas (LPGA Tour) and Byron Smith (2007 Canadian Tour Player of the Year) to exclusive representation agreements.

* If there’s one thing you look for in an up and coming golfer, its consistent and marked improvement. Australia’s Matt Jones, an Arizona State graduate and Imani Sports client (through its CEO Chris Murray) since 2001, certainly fits the bill. Heading into this weekend the Tour rookie was 6-for-6 in cuts this season, with four finishes in the top 30. After spending roughly five seasons on the Nationwide Tour from 2002-2007, including last season when he finished runner-up four times (the Tour record is five) the 27-year old Jones took center stage this weekend as he battled for his first PGA victory on one of The Tour’s toughest weekly stops at PGA National. Announcers Roger Maltbie and Johnny Miller each rightfully praised Jones for his solid fundamentals and professional demeanor, and it will be interesting to see if Jones can validate his strong play (he finished the event T5) in the weeks and months to come.

* Golf and sportswear designer Linda Hipp announced that her company, LIJA, has selected nine elite LPGA, Futures and Ladies European Tour players to join its unique new sponsorship initiative for 2008 — the Tour Style Leaders program. Based on a variety of factors — including previous performance and on-course style, as well as a brief essay on how golf has impacted their lives — the nine professionals chosen to participate are Marisa Baena, Courtney Erdman, Jennifer Greggain, Jimin Kang, Leta Lindley, Brenda McLarnon, Jane Park, Georgina Simpson and Christina Kim, who partnered with the brand last season. As Style Leaders, each woman will receive an expansive selection of LIJA products to wear on- and off-course throughout the 2008 season, including an array of tops, bottoms, sweaters, outerwear and accessories.

* Fresh off of her Octagon to IMG switch, Natalie Gulbis has redesigned her website. According to the people at thegolfblog.com, “the site was designed by the Tenth Floor and looks really sharp. They have a video section, but just one cool compilation video so far. Natalie’s blog is still there, but no new entries yet.”