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RCS: In the last two years, two sports-related issues have permeated the national political agenda: steroids in baseball and the BCS. Do you think political intervention has helped to bring resolution to the problems?

Todd: Clearly it helped in baseball. As much as I was a cynic about it -- like I guess I didn’t like politicians grandstanding about it, who were they to do this? Don’t get involved -- there’s a lot more serious issues. You know what, I feel better about baseball today than I have in ten years. As somebody who witnessed Mark McGwire’s 61st home run, the one that tied Maris, I feel like that whole moment was snatched away for me. It’s a phony memory now. At the time I thought, oh, isn’t this great. I’m at Busch Stadium and I get to witness that moment and now it’s a moment I wish I didn’t witness and pretend it never happened. So in that respect I think that the intervention worked.

In college football, I don’t know. There’s actually a legitimate reason for Congress to get involved, since a lot of these institutions are public. The government could get involved a little bit here and perhaps claim some version of jurisdiction. Other than gaining access to the BCS I don’t think they can mandate a playoff. Obviously university presidents have always been completely hypocritical about college football versus college basketball when it comes to the playoff idea. But that’s for university presidents to have to reconcile.

RCS Interviews Chuck Todd