And we wonder why our best and our brightest don’t want to become our national leaders…
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peas on earth
While I respect Astorian’s civil libertarian leanings and clean-living, I’m pretty sure The Shrub used cocaine. That’s a felony where I come from, although it’s not always a felony under Federal law. He’s also admitted to drinking too much, dancing naked and in general having a grand old time. None of these things in themselves would cause me not to vote for him but hypocrisy would. Don’t get me wrong; I hate cocaine and everything I’ve seen it do to this country. But it seems to me that the better question is whether he was supervising people being incarcerated for important portions of their lives for the same “youthful indiscretions” that he was indulging in. (I know it’s never really “sauce for the goose” but you’d like to think it was at least chicken gravy on that gander.)
Re: the “I didn’t inhale” line- I thought this was utter bs, too, until I talked to my dad. Seems that he tried to smoke tobacco cigarettes and could not keep the smoke down because he was coughing too much. He gave it up in disgust and thinks the same could probably happen with a joint. Personally, I think they weren’t trying hard enough, but that’s just me. 
“You don’t drink, don’t smoke: what do you do?” -A. Ant
Best and brightest what though? I would say that our presidential candidates are the people best able to lie and philander their way to the top. Are they smart? Absolutely. It takes someone with a high level of intelligence and understanding of human nature to, at the very least, surround themselves with the people who will get them to the top.
Cynical? Yes, but I DO vote. I figure they’re all liars and hypocrites, but I vote for the one who’s most likely to support what I want supported.
In general, very few people change their minds about the politicians they like over issues like this. If Bill Clinton’s lecherousness bothers you, it PROBABLY means you never liked him in the first place. If allegations of drug use by George W. Bush bother you, it probably means you hated him already. Most people have their minds made up, and merely use scandals to confirm their existing prejudices.
I repeat, I don’t know whether George W> has used cocaine. If people want to assume his refusal to answer means “yes,” I can certainly understand, and they’re entitled to draw that conclusion.
However, my alternative scenario remains. Suppose he did some embarrassing things in his bachelor days (which he undoubtedly did). He figures, “I’m married now, I’m stable now, I don’t drink any more… everything’s peachy.” But he knows that stories of his days as a hard drinking, hard partying woman chaser could come back to haunt him. So, he’s made a categorical decision: don’t answer ANY questions of a personal nature. Just refuse to answer ANY of them. Make it clear that he’s not going to provide any juciy stories or revealing tidbits, and hope the reporters get tired of this and move on. (Not bloody likely, of course, but more on that in a moment.)
Now, suppose George (or ANY candidate for that matter… play along, and pretend it’s ANY politician that you DO like) makes that decision- NO talking to the press about his private life- then what? Suppose reporters come along and ask “Have you ever beaten your wife… have you ever committed adultery …have you ever tortured small animals… have you ever engaged in homosexuality?” It would seem easy and logical to say “No… no… and no! Of course not!” But is that wise? Once you’ve started answering THOSE questions, you pretty much lose the ability to blow of SUBSEQUENT questions, don’t you?
I mean, once you’re on record as saying, “No, I’ve never cheated on my wife,” the media feel free to ask about ANY area of your private life! When they get around to asking, “How often do you masturbate,” a candidate has NO right to say “None of your damn business,” becuse he’s already pretty much conceded that his sex life IS the media’s business!
George has learned this first hand. When he FIRST announced his candidacy, he admitted (without any specifics) that, when he was younger, he drank and partied a little too much. He obviously HOPED that, by admitting this up front, he’d be taking some pressure off himself, and would derail future smear campaigns. Fat chance! Indeed, MANY of the left-wing journalists tearing into Bush right now are arguing that, since Bush has talked about his drinking, he no longer has any right to privacy on any other issue!
By answering questions about drug use, Bush would open the door to all kinds of other questions. He MIGHT be wise to keep the door slammed shut.
At first i was kinda proud of Shrub when he said he wasn’t gonna get into that kind of politics and that’s why he wouldn’t answer.then he stared weaseling around and he went right back down again. i am really amazed at the popularity he has. He’s really done nothing down here. (Took credit for a ‘tax break’ that was a dozen years in the making as was the incredibly generous teachers pay raise (think the teachers leapt all the way from 39th in the nation to 35th) the tax break is more than disappearing as local govts. take up the lack of state funding.he was swept into office in a big republican muscle flex. no one knew anything about him before he ran for govenor. No one knows anything about him now. may be that’s his secret , don’t say anything and you won’t say anything wrong. as soon as he started expanding on his non-answer to the drug thing he started getting in trouble. I miss Ms Richards,even when she sais something wrong, it was damn entertaing.
“Pardon me while I have a strange interlude.”-Marx
astorian said:
Really? Hated? Hmmm, interesting. You must be psychic, eh?
Er, have you been paying any actual attention to the situation? GW already has opened the door by picking and choosing the drug-related questions he wants to answer. That’s the whole point of this thread! If he had just shut up, as he originally claimed he would do, that would’ve gone along with your scenario here. But he didn’t. He decided to start answering the questions he could say “no” to. Did he do drugs in the last 7 years? No. How about the last 15? No. How about going back to when he was 18 years old? Won’t answer. How about before then. Won’t answer. You’ve said it yourself – he opened the door and now he wants to shut it again. Too late.