| Take Bush DUI in Context, MADD Says | |
Times and attitudes have changed greatly since George W. Bush was stopped for drinking and driving, a Texas Mothers Against Drunk Driving spokepersons says. Thanks to organizations like MADD, drunk drivers today not only face stiffer penalties and fines, drinking and driving is no longer socially accepted as it once was, in the era of the "cocktail party."
This week, in an apparent last-minute effort to damage the presidential campaign of Republican candidate George W. Bush, a 24-year-old drunk driving charge surfaced in the national news media. It was also reported the Bush running mate Dick Cheney also had two DUI arrests from the 1960's and 1970's.
"They are of a generation when cocktail parties were woven into the fabric of our social lives," said Toni Logan, spokeswoman for the Texas chapter of MADD told WorldNetDaily. "Smoking and drinking were glamorized then. Remember cocktail hour? I mean, women had entire wardrobes with matching shoes," she said. "And nobody thought much about getting behind the wheel after a party. There was no such thing as a designated driver."
Americans have a lot more information now about the safety risks, she added, "and we've adjusted attitudes accordingly."
Logan also said Bush could have been more up-front about his DUI arrest and turned it to his advantage. "Too late now," she told WorldNetDaily.
People Can Change
Meanwhile MADD National President Millie I. Webb issued a statement concerning what has now become a campaign issue, saying "Governor Bush's arrest happened nearly 25 years ago, we hope that the experience had an impact on his life and helped him to realize the devastation that can result from getting behind the wheel after drinking alcohol. We recognize that people can change.""Drunk driving is the nation's most frequently committed violent crime. Three out of every ten Americans will be affected by impaired driving at some time in their lives. As a victim, it is always disheartening to hear that anyone, whether average American or national celebrity, has been involved with drunk driving," Webb's statement said.
"We appreciate Governor Bush's support of anti-drunk driving legislation in Texas and are likewise grateful for Vice President Gore's backing for such lifesaving legislation," Webb said. "Each year nearly 16,000 people are killed and 600,000 others are injured due to alcohol-related crashes."
"The new President will have the responsibility to protect the citizens on our nation's roadways and should be a leader in the fight against drunk driving and in efforts reach our national goal to reduce alcohol-related traffic deaths to 11,000 by the end of his term in 2005."
Bush was pulled over by police for driving too slowly near his family's Kennebunkport, Maine, summer home during the Labor Day weekend in 1976. He paid a $150 fine and had his driving privileges revoked in the state of Maine for a short period. His drivers' license in Texas, where Bush lived at the time, was not revoked or suspended, a spokesperson said.
