# In your opinion, is it ok for the POTUS to get drunk? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 23, 2014, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413 "2014-11-23T17:51:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/61 "2014-11-25T16:57:05Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > And if that’s the standard you go by for having a drinking problem, you may as well say if you drink at all at any point in your life, you have a “problem”. You, uh, saw that winking smilie right? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![May\_20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ce7236/32.png) [@May\_20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/May_20)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/62 "2014-11-25T17:12:10Z")
I say it’s never okay for the president to be drunk. He may be a glorified CEO, but he still has one set of keys to the very big guns. That’s a lot of responsibility. The president shouldn’t intentionally do things that could cloud his mind. But I also will reveal my bias. I don’t drink for a few reasons, and I don’t view drinking as a necessity, even in a social setting. Please understand that I’m not saying that no one should drink because I am not saying that. I simply don’t view the consumption of alcohol as a social requirement. If we were to elect a teetotaler to office (I concede that is highly unlikely), he or she should be free to abstain without feeling the pressure to consume. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/63 "2014-11-25T17:19:10Z")
Should we assume that all the politicians we see, but have never once seen drunk, are abstaining? I’d say no. I’d guess politicians, if they are to rise, are savvy enough to understand to drink only moderately, in public, and should they wish to get drunk, do so privately and with discretion. I kinda feel that by the time you’ve risen to being on the ballot for president you have already mastered this wisdom. Do I assume that nary a president has been shitfaced in the White House? Hardly! Discretion is all, in politics! ---
**Author:** ![skdo23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@skdo23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/skdo23)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/64 "2014-11-25T17:28:05Z")
> [@VarlosZ](#): > > If I’m the Official Secret Service Bartender, I’m cutting him off after three – two if he’s in public with anyone other than friends/high level staffers. [The master speaks.](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2910/is-the-secret-service-responsible-for-keeping-the-president-from-getting-drunk) ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/65 "2014-11-25T17:54:22Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > Should we assume that all the politicians we see, but have never once seen drunk, are abstaining? I’d say no. I’d guess politicians, if they are to rise, are savvy enough to understand to drink only moderately, in public, and should they wish to get drunk, do so privately and with discretion. Which reminds me, Marion Barry died the other day. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/66 "2014-11-25T18:26:44Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > I dare say he would have acted more quickly. > > But what exactly _did_ the president do or not do on 9/11 that was so important? Seems like he could have went golfing that day and history would be no different. I’m not sure this is the best example of why the president can’t get drunk, ever, in case X happens. > [@Eonwe](#): > > Not to hijack this thread, but this is one of my peeves. > > _Nothing_ significant would be different if Bush had done, er, something other than what he did in the minutes/hours while that all went down. To clarify (ironically, I was a little tipsy when I typed that post), I didn’t find anything worthy of criticism in GWB’s reaction to the 9/11 attacks, and thought Moore’s film was a hatchet job - even speaking as someone who hated his presidency. I was just pointing out that if he had been completely trashed when those attacks happened - like, literally two hours from being able to make a well-considered decision - that would have been a problem. ---
**Author:** ![Atomic\_Alex](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atomic_alex/32/175_2.png) [@Atomic\_Alex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atomic_Alex)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/67 "2014-11-25T18:27:27Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > Yes, but by that logic you might as well say: “No more going outside when it’s raining, the President could get struck by lightning!” I don’t see how those two scenarios are comparable. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/68 "2014-11-25T19:39:17Z")
> [@bup](#): > > Wait until you’re out of office. Then, I don’t care. But while you’re POTUS, you’re on call 24/7. > [@Disposable Hero](#): > > I don’t have any particular problem with it morally etc but for someone who might be called upon to make incredibly weighty decisions at short notice (I’m thinking of breaking open the nuclear football or reacting to 9/11 style event) it would probably better that he kept a clear head. I have this mental image of something like the Hot Line conversation with the drunk-off-his-ass Soviet Premier in _Doctor Strangelove_. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/69 "2014-11-25T20:54:20Z")
> [@May\_20](#): > > If we were to elect a teetotaler to office (I concede that is highly unlikely), he or she should be free to abstain without feeling the pressure to consume. George W. Bush? Not while in office at least. Hayes and Lincoln apparently? Possibly Biden? ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/70 "2014-11-25T21:16:40Z")
Only in private. With the FLOTUS on a special occasion or when it’s sexy time. That’s it. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/71 "2014-11-25T21:27:36Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > You, uh, saw that winking smilie right? 😕 Heh, sorry about that **JT** Allow me to direct that post towards **Anaamika** : > [@Anaamika](#): > > No drunkenness. Not until he leaves office. No more than two drinks. > > Jeez, if you can’t swear off getting drunk - not just drinking - for eight years, then I submit you have a problem. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/72 "2014-11-25T21:36:20Z")
> [@Disposable Hero](#): > > I don’t see how those two scenarios are comparable. I’m saying it’s more likely the President would get struck by lightning than it is that a nuclear attack scare would happen at the exact time the President happened to be drunk. (Which would be no more than two times a year, mind you.) ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/73 "2014-11-25T21:44:26Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > I’m saying it’s more likely the President would get struck by lightning than it is that a nuclear attack scare would happen at the exact time the President happened to be drunk. (Which would be no more than two times a year, mind you.) 4th of July and Super Bowl Sunday? ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/74 "2014-11-25T22:18:13Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > Pretty sure it helped get Rob Ford elected. And we don’t really care if the PM gets drunk. In fact, I could be wrong, but I don’t think you qualify for public office in Canada unless you’re an accomplished drinker. > > I mean really you want an abstainer running the show? Some sissy two drink pantywaist? > > Not in Canada, that’s not how we roll! > 😃 Do the First Nations people feel that way as well? ---
**Author:** ![Atomic\_Alex](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atomic_alex/32/175_2.png) [@Atomic\_Alex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atomic_Alex)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/75 "2014-11-25T22:26:06Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > I’m saying it’s more likely the President would get struck by lightning than it is that a nuclear attack scare would happen at the exact time the President happened to be drunk. (Which would be no more than two times a year, mind you.) It did happen to Yeltsin, though granted he was apparently drunk most of the time. And unlikely as it is, given the potential scale of the problems perhaps he, or potentially she, can stay off the sauce for a while, its not that big a sacrifice. But then I can take or leave alcohol so if someone told me I had to stay sober for the next eight years it wouldn’t particularly bother me. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/76 "2014-11-25T22:51:53Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > No drunkenness. Not until he leaves office. No more than two drinks. > > Jeez, if you can’t swear off getting drunk - not just drinking - for eight years, then I submit you have a problem. I resemble that comment! ---
**Author:** ![May\_20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ce7236/32.png) [@May\_20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/May_20)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2014, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/77 "2014-11-26T04:51:02Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > George W. Bush? Not while in office at least. Hayes and Lincoln apparently? Possibly Biden? So, three out of 44? I won’t count Biden since he is vice-president, not president. Assuming that the three listed abstained while in office, that is a 7% teetotaler rate. I still contend that “highly unlikely” fits. Thanks for the info. I didn’t know. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2014, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/78 "2014-11-26T05:15:06Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > George W. Bush? Not while in office at least. hmm, that pretzel incident looked mighty suspicious. Though, perhaps the damage was done well and years ago, he did not _have_ to drink. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2014, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/79 "2014-11-26T05:19:58Z")
> [@May\_20](#): > > So, three out of 44? I won’t count Biden since he is vice-president, not president. Old Handsome Joe is Cheney to to Obama’s Bush. As for Nixon and Johnson, did they ever make decisions sober? ---
**Author:** ![Hector\_St\_Clare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5ac83/32.png) [@Hector\_St\_Clare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hector_St_Clare)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2014, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413/80 "2014-11-27T02:00:10Z")
> [@The Great Sun Jester](#): > > I think Vlad and Barry could get a lot done if they could bond over beers and vodka in their respective hometowns. Hell, more power all around if they could get Un to play with them–doing whatever they think might be fun (although Un would take endless shit for not having a functional nuke or delivery system). > > But seriously. 0.15 BAC wouldn’t be too bad. Some lower inhibitions might facilitate honest unguarded discussion and address some mutual mistrust twixt him and his opposition. 0.25 or more might not be a good idea unless he’s living it up in the French Quarter scoffing mudbugs and Pabst after a productive FEMA conference. > > And maybe that’s the answer: A president who can work past an obstructionist oppostion and visibly improve things at home and abroad, bringing the troops back home, making actual progress on repairing infrastructure, etc. That guy can do pretty much what he wants within reason because, hey, he flogs the players into the same game and makes good things happen. Upright and uptight pres who gets nothing done is more worthy of scorn. I’d more or less agree. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-your-opinion-is-it-ok-for-the-potus-to-get-drunk/705413.md?page=5)