If Kerry Can Bring Out The AWOL Issue, What About The Coke Toots?

DrFunkenstein

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Mon Feb-02-04 10:43 PM
Original message

If Kerry Can Bring Out The AWOL Issue, What About The Coke Toots?

Edited on Mon Feb-02-04 10:44 PM by DrFunkenstein

Considering that Kerry was one of the leaders cracking down on Central American drug smuggling - Manuel Noriega in particular - and exposed the CIA connection to that smuggling, do you think the media will pick up the fact that Bush did coke, but sent people to the big house for doing the same?

The fact that Bush lost his National Guard flying privileges because he refused to take a drug test can be a jumping off point. How much political damage do you think this could do?

Kerry admitted smoking pot, and favors a great relaxing of marijuana laws (but not legalization - sorry). The GOP tried to slam Gore for smoking pot - and no one bothered to pursue Bush's cocaine charges. Should we let him off the hook again?

Think that aircraft carrier stunt is going to bite him in the ass?

Edited for bonus feature:

But despite significant media attention this week, the only government official to touch upon the disconnect between the drug use of political leaders and the punitive drug policies that they often espouse was Sen. John Kerry (D-MA).

On Monday, Kerry was asked by reporters to explain why he thought that questions surrounding George Bush regarding whether or not he had used cocaine were more substantively relevant than Gore's use of marijuana. Kerry, noting that Al Gore had already admitted his use of marijuana, said:

"(H)e (Gore) said 'I used it.' So that's not an issue... And I don't think Al Gore intends, you know, to make prior use an issue of other people, except to the degree that it affects public policy."

Pressed later on the question of the Bush cocaine rumors, Kerry laid out his thinking on why Bush's drug use, if substantiated, is indeed an important issue for voters to consider:

"The issue about George Bush is not the fact that he may have used it, said Kerry. "The issue about George Bush is, how can you, if you have (used cocaine), have a position that is so at odds in terms of being a governor where you send a lot of other people who may have done the same thing you do to jail. That's the issue. It's not a question of whether he used it or when he used it, it's a question of what his policy is today and whether that's hypocritical and dangerous."

The Week Online spoke with Kerry Spokesman David Wade, who reiterated the Senator's position.

"The Vice President has long admitted that he has used marijuana," said Wade. "Governor Bush, on the other hand, will say only that when he was young and irresponsible, he was young and irresponsible. But when Bush has had the opportunity to score political points in Texas by promulgating tough, extremely punitive new laws against drug users, he has been happy to do so."

http://www.stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/123/gorequestions.shtml