Specter repeats Spygate demand

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Arlen Specter reiterated his call for the NFL to initiate an independent investigation into Spygate.

The Pennsylvania Republican entered a statement Thursday into the Congressional Record concerning the New England Patriots' videotaping scandal.

The statement repeats many of the points Specter made in at a news conference May 14, including a push for an investigation similar to the high-profile Mitchell Report that examined performance enhancing drugs in baseball.

"My strong preference is for the NFL to activate a Mitchell-type investigation," Specter's statement said. "I have been careful not to call for a Congressional hearing because I believe the NFL should step forward and embrace an independent inquiry and Congress is extraordinarily busy on other matters If the NFL continues to leave a vacuum, Congress may be tempted to fill it."

Specter has been proactive in seeking greater NFL accountability into the Spygate affair, which centers on Patriots' taping of opposing teams' defensive signals over a span of several years. Specter has met with — and been highly critical of — NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. The Senator also met with former New England video assistant Matt Walsh, a central figure in the scandal.

"The commissioner's investigation has been fatally flawed," the statement said. "The lack of candor, the piecemeal disclosures, the changes in position on material matters, the failure to be proactive in seeking out other key witnesses, and responding only when unavoidable when evidence is thrust upon the NFL leads to the judgment that an impartial investigation is mandatory."

Goodell essentially declared an end to Spygate after meeting with Walsh last month, saying there was no new information that would warrant a further penalty against the Patriots. The commissioner docked New England a 2008 first-round draft pick and fined coach Bill Belichick $500,000 and the team $250,000 last fall.