Notable Quotes: Steroid Hearings

WASHINGTON – Remarks from lawmakers and witnesses at Thursday's hearing on steroids in baseball:

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"I will use whatever influence and popularity that I have to discourage young athletes from taking any drug that is not recommended by a doctor. What I will not do, however, is participate in naming names and implicating my friends and teammates." — Mark McGwire, the retired slugger who ranks sixth in major league history with 583 career homers.

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"I have never taken illegal performance-enhancing drugs. I have never injected myself or had anyone inject me with anything. I have not broken the laws of the United States or the laws of the Dominican Republic. I have been tested as recently as 2004 and I am clean." — Sammy Sosa of the Baltimore Orioles. His lawyer read his prepared testimony.

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"We're not interested in embarrassing anyone or ruining careers or grandstanding. This is not a witch hunt. ... Today's hearing will not be the end of our inquiry. Far from it. Nor will Major League Baseball be our sole or even primary focus. We're in the first inning of what could be an extra inning ball game." — House Government Reform Committee Chairman Tom Davis, R-Va.

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"Over the past century, baseball has been part of our social fabric. It helped restore normalcy after war, provided the playing field where black athletes like Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier, and inspired civic pride in communities across the country. Now America is asking baseball for integrity. An unequivocal statement against cheating. An unimpeachable policy. And a reason for all of us to have faith in the sport again." — Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif.

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"Major League Baseball has always recognized the influence that our stars can have on the youth of America. As such, we are concerned that recent revelations and allegations of steroid use have been sending a terrible message to young people." — Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig.

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"Baseball's policy needs to be one of zero tolerance and it needs to have teeth." — Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md.

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"Like I said before, I've never taken it. So if you want to play under the rules of the Olympics, I welcome it." — Rafael Palmeiro of the Baltimore Orioles, asked if stricter drug testing rules, such as those for Olympic athletes, should extend to baseball.

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"Playing major league baseball requires talent, drive, intelligence, determination and grit. Steroids have no place in the equation." — Donald Fehr, executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association.

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"Go ask Henry Aaron, go ask the family of Roger Maris, go ask all of the people who played without enhanced drugs if they would like their records compared with the current records." — Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky., a former pitcher elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996.

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"I'm not here to talk about the past." — McGwire's oft-repeated answer to questions about what he knew about steroid use when he played.

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"Players that are guilty of taking steroids are not only cheaters, you are cowards. ... Show our kids that you're man enough to face authority, tell the truth and face the consequences. Instead, you hide behind the skirts of your union, and with the help of management and your lawyers you've made every effort to resist facing the public today." — Donald Hooton of Plano, Texas, father of a high school baseball player who committed suicide in 2003 after steroid use.

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"There's no doubt in our minds that steroids killed our son. Ultimately we do blame Rob for his use. ... However, with his sports heroes as examples, and Major League Baseball's blind eye, Rob's decision was a product of erroneous information and promises." — Denise Garibaldi of Petaluma, Calif., mother of a college player who used steroids and committed suicide in 2002.

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"My heart and condolences go out to those families who lost their children to use of steroids. ... After this hearing, I will be happy to work with them in whatever way I can to help convey to the youth of America the message that steroid use is unnecessary to be a great athlete and that they are harmful to use to those who take them." — Jose Canseco, who has acknowledged using steroids during a career in which he hit 462 home runs. he also wrote a best-selling book in which he alleged McGwire and other major leaguers used steroids.

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"The allegations made in that book, the attempts to smear the names of players both past and present, having been made by one who for years vehemently denied steroid use, should be seen for what they are: an attempt to make money at the expense of others." — Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling, referring to Canseco's book.

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"So that there is no misunderstanding from my perspective, I will suspend any player who tests positive for an illegal steroid. There will be no exceptions. The (players) union is aware of that and they accept it." — Selig.