WASHINGTON – Democrats and Republicans came together for the congressional baseball game at Nationals Park benefiting local charities in the nation’s capital.
“It’s fun. It’s a beautiful night. It stopped raining so it’s a good night to see fellow members make fools of themselves, it’s great,” said Republican Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz.
PJ Media asked Chaffetz if the game would help both parties agree on issues off of the field.
“I don’t know. I hope Republicans will ultimately score a run or two – that would be nice to get on the board. Democrats are pretty good at baseball,” he told PJ Media before the game concluded with Democrats winning 22-0. It was the fifth year Dems won the game in a row.
South Carolina Republican Senator Tim Scott was hopeful the Republicans would catch up from being 8 runs down.
“Never surrender. We’re right in the middle of the game – it’s not over yet. We can still come back,” said Scott during the game.
“It’s a great time. It’s a good charity opportunity to see Congress members, senators giving back to the community; fantastic game. It provides an opportunity for a bipartisan relationship, which is necessary so this is good stuff.”
Congress ranked last out of 16 institutions in Americans’ confidence, the lowest level recorded, according to a Gallup poll released on Thursday.
Whether any “bipartisanship” would remain after the matchup as Congress faces some controversial issues such as immigration reform is, Scott said, “to be determined.”
He added, “I think it’s already there to some extent but you need to find common ground and not necessarily look for ways to negotiate on everything but find some common ground.”
For Oklahoma Republican Rep. James Lankford, the game was a chance to see members of Congress and Hill staffers “in a more casual setting.”
Lankford told PJ Media he was hoping to “develop some relationships and hang around some people from both parties.”
He was also skeptical that bipartisanship would wind up carrying over from the game to the Capitol building.
“It probably won’t help us based on how bad the Democrats are currently creaming us. We’ll just go back with even more hard feelings from there,” said Lankford.
“We need some green space just to be able to breathe in at this point – it’s nice to breathe in the green grass but the Capitol is actually too much like the field with one team against the other and lined up in different spots. I’m afraid we’re too much like the field rather than too little.”
South Carolina Republican Rep. Joe Wilson called the faceoff a “fun time to see Republicans and Democrats together” and a “dedication on the part of people playing” that “practiced” and made “a serious effort.”
The congressional baseball game for charity was established in 1909. It benefits The Boys and Girls Club of Greater Washington, The Nationals Dream Foundation and The Washington Literacy Center.
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