Report: Rick Perry used painkillers to help him get through debates

[kpete]

Source: Daily Caller

Report: Rick Perry used painkillers to help him get through debates
Published: 11:36 AM 04/02/2012

...............................

“It became an open secret that he was using painkillers in sufficient dosages to keep him standing through the two-hour debates,” write the authors of “Inside the Circus.”

..........................

The authors imply that the painkillers may have led to a humorous incident before an October debate in New Hampshire when the “manager of a rival campaign” overheard Perry belting out the song “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad” while in the bathroom.

“Wondering who was making all the noise, the campaign manager turned his head and saw, to his surprise, the governor of Texas,” the book states. “Perry came down the row of about twenty urinals and stood companionably close by.

Allen and Thomas continue: “Nonplussed, the campaign manager made a hasty exit; as the bathroom door closed, he could hear Perry still merrily singing away: “I-I-I’ve been working on the ra-a-i-i-l-road, all-l-l the live-long day . .




Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2012/04/02/report-rick-perry-used-painkillers-to-help-him-get-through-debates/#ixzz1qzGZ0aPE

[DontTreadOnMe]

1. I don't know why everyone attacks Rick Perry

He seems like such a nice guy, you know... the kind of guy you would have a beer with.

[caseymoz]

21. Beer and oxycodone with Rush? nt

[freshwest]

45. Rush sounded for years like he was drunk on the air. His listeners never noticed. Then he told his..

Tale of 'woe is me, poor little me, I'm just a suffering soldier on the path of righteousness,' to his listeners.

He let allowed them on air to give their sympathies, being the malignant black hole of narcissism that he is, and it was all good!

Even after his rants of how no one who ever broke the law or did drugs should be shown no mercy at all...

This is just a load of PR to make Governor Goodhair look the victim after he stuck up the State of Texas to the tune of millions and billions.

Yee-Haw!

[randome]

22. And then borrow 50 bucks from.

[Javaman]

34. I know you are being snarky, but it's obvious you don't live in Texas

where having to deal with his blatant stupidity becomes a trial in patience.

[Enrique]

2. so did I n/t

[Stuckinthebush]

6. DUzy!

[Kadie]

42. ROFL!

Thanks. I needed a good laugh today.

[woo me with science]

51. Bwah!

[joshcryer]

59. Heh! Win!

[sinkingfeeling]

3. Another RW drug addict who wants prison time for weed users.

[caseymoz]

23. He might not be an addict.

If he had back problems and had to stand through the debates, I could see where he would have taken too strong a dose to get himself through. Dangerous though. He might have ended up hooked.

I have back problems, so I understand this.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

4. Is he any smarter when he's not stoned on Vicodin?

Rumor has it that he's as dumb as a stump all the time.

[northoftheborder]

27. True

[Brettongarcia]

31. The Repubs are just using this as an excuse. I know him; Rick Perry is that dumb, ALL the time

He's an A&M aggie, for gosh sake! An Agriculture major! Never heard any "Aggie" jokes?

I'm from Texas, and have been running into him since he flew a transport plane for the Army, 30 or 40 years ago. In fact, his son is named after my (real) name. Though he doesn't know it.

Dumb as a stump. But it works ... out in the sticks. Got him elected in fact, in the State of Texas. Where all you gotta' do, is look and sound like a cowboy all the time.

[Javaman]

35. +1000

indeed. Dumb as a mud fence.

[cindyperry2010]

5. why painkillers

from a previous injury or just a plain drug addiction?

[drm604]

11. The article says that he had back surgery.

Presumably it was painful to stand all of that time because of the surgery.

[cindyperry2010]

13. sorry missed that part

that can be painful but also lead down a bad road

[Botany]

7. Look at the source ... the Daily Caller

This smells like spin to me. Perry is not dumb as a box of dryer lint
he just seemed dumb because he was on pain killers.

[Blue_Tires]

20. Yeah, I'm curious to know why the Caller would burn one of their boys

[Javaman]

36. Perry isn't dumb, he just plays dumb on TV...

and in front of audiences, on call in programs, in the line for a burger, accepting awards, walking his dog and while being governor.

other than that, nope, not dumb at all.

[allan01]

8. re:Report: Rick Perry used painkillers to help him get through debates

More like, marijuana , marijuana lsd lsd. teachers make it, teachers take it, why cant we?!?!

[trof]

9. That might explain his weird behavior in Manchester, NH.

He was positively giddy.

"Rumors of Perry using painkillers on the campaign trail have been reported before. After after a lively and much-lampooned speech at the Cornerstone Action Dinner in Manchester, N.H. in November, he was forced to deny having been on medication."

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2012/04/02/report-rick-perry-used-painkillers-to-help-him-get-through-debates/#ixzz1qzJoz1Y3

[agentS]

10. Don't blame the guy

Those debates were painful to listen to, let alone participate in.

[Javaman]

37. sleeping pills would have worked better. nt

[wordpix]

12. dumb as a stump, painkillers or no ---whoops!

[Gibby]

14. Republicans are so very often closet dopers

But they get their drugs of choice with 'prescriptions' and that makes it totally IOKIYAR.

Republicons are so unlike Americans. They are, as they keep telling themselves, special.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

15. Now, if he had belted out "Bohemian Rhapsody," it would be a story.

.

[cindyperry2010]

17. oh my god

that would have been a story

[Myrina]

16. Another idiot substance abusing governor from Texas ...

... where have I seen this before? Hmmmm .....

[Bonduel]

28. Do we really want to make it seem like anyone taking painkillers is a doper

It's tough enough for those of us who have taken painkillers for one reason or another to get people to understand that we need them to get through the day sometimes or even to sleep at night. There doesn't seem to be any evidence of abuse that I know of. And even if there was I would have sympathy for him. Painkillers can create a real problem for many people. Problems I wouldn't wish on anyone. Not even Rick Perry. Plus, he has so many other problems that we can pick on him for. For all the things that disgust me about Rick Perry this is pretty low down on the list.

[Javaman]

38. no, but it appears as if it's a recent requirement of Texas Governors. nt

[Myrina]

39. Ok, let's put it this way:

Would you go to an interview for the most important job of your life lit up?

On national tv, for (arguably) THE most important job in the world ... wouldn't you want to make sure you were 150% as sober as possible, regardless of the pain, or would you really not give a shit enough that you'd conduct yourself in the way Perry did?

[Bonduel]

47. I actually met with what turned

out to be my 2nd biggest customer while on pain killers. We were going to be walking the factory floor for half the day. I'm not saying he should have been on pain killers. But just because someone is on pain killers doesn't mean they are dopers. That's all I'm saying. I have experienced pain that has put me down for a long period of time. Almost made me vomit and the only thing that got me through was pain killers.

[aquart]

56. Exactly. Painkillers enabled you to function at your job. You were not high, you were working.

[Voice for Peace]

18. update

UPDATE: Ray Sullivan, Perry’s former campaign communications director, responded to the report by saying, “POLITICO’s e-book is a low in irresponsible, unsourced and unfounded ‘reporting,’ with anonymous untruths about Gov. Perry’s debate performances.”

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2012/04/02/report-rick-perry-used-painkillers-to-help-him-get-through-debates/#ixzz1qzRiB2Qv

[wordpix]

19. i think the "untruth" may have been that he was singing "Oh, Susannah" instead of

"I've Been Working ont eh Railroad."

[saras]

24. SO WHAT? He was in pain, that's what they're for, end of story.

Is he consistently, on an ongoing base, acting worse than the other candidates? No? Then no problem.

[Brettongarcia]

46. Problem was, he WAS lots worse than other candidates.

Din't 1) know when the election was; didn't know that 2) you can vote at 18; dint know 3) what branches of government it was, that he himself had promised to shut down. Din't know ... 4) how many justices there were on the Supreme Court. Didn't know 5) NUTHIN'!

Dint even no the main things a president of the US govment shud no!

This guy was dummer than ennyybody!

[HopeHoops]

25. So did the audience.

[CTyankee]

26. I went through a period of time post-op that I had to take painkillers. I wasn't singing.

I was pretty much out of it. I didn't dare drive of course so I retreated to my bedroom.

My time on painkillers was short lived but it was no party. This is probably why after several months of taking them, I didn't become addicted. They just didn't have a particularly pleasurable effect on me. They merely blocked the pain (and made me a bit more sluggish).

[barbtries]

29. was he taking them for managing pain

or to get high? because he seemed pretty zonked at times.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

30. How did JFK get through the debates? Or FDR?

If FDR was in debates, he could probably sit. Any debates would have only been on the radio, or possibly on film for later viewing.

JFK supposedly had a bad back, so standing through a debate would be a challenge.

If I stand for a long time, my back will kill me. So I probably won't run for president. In fact, I probably wouldn't be able to be a Walmart greeter. Bad backs suck.



Anyway, ok, now I feel a little bad for Perry. But I'm glad he's not going to be president. Dumber than Dubya, there's a campaign slogan.

[Brettongarcia]

41. "Dubya Dumber"? Dumb and Dubya Dumber? Got to be a good pun in here somewhere....

"Dumber than Dubya!" LIke it!

[GodlessBiker]

32. I had to take painkillers, too, watching him debate.

[SemperEadem]

33. was he in some kind of genuine pain or was he abusing prescription medication?

how/why did he have pain killers of the sort that rendered him a blithering idiot? And if he required such medication, why did he not just keep his butt at home--or better still, not even try to run for office if routine functioning meant that he had to be doped up?

[IggleDoer]

40. Need to drug test all Repub candidates.

Since they won't be open and above board with the public.

[pa28]

43. He was wasted half the time on the stump as well. Remember his speech from October?

You'd have to be such an arrogant SOB to appear in public that way and actually expect to be elected president.

[Yavin4]

44. Best Anti-Drug Message Ever

Hey kids, do drugs and you'll end up a dumbass like Rick Perry.

[Fuddnik]

49. I take exception.

I take oxycodone for back pain, and I worked on the railroad.

Even I know better than to sing in the urinals. It sounds like something from Larry Craig, and John Ashcroft's "Singing Senators" barbershop quartet.

[aquart]

54. NO. It perpetuates the misinformation that makes it so difficult to treat pain in this country.

Don't let them get away with it.

[MADem]

48. Another thread on this here....

http://www.democraticunderground.com/125127127

[Major Hogwash]

55. Perry on painkillers -- how redundant!!

Like when President Ford came down the steps when he got off of his jet real fast that one time.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow."

[Typical NYC Lib]

50. LOL!

Good excuse :evelgrin:

[aquart]

52. If you take painkillers for pain, you sound sane not stoned.

Painkillers enable people to function. Perry sounded high as a kite. That's a whole different deal, sorry.

Not buying the excuse.

[Major Hogwash]

53. The railroad Perry was working on was the P.U. Shortline RR.

Don't need painkillers for that!!!

Good thing he wasn't singing "I'm a little teapot, short and stout . . ."

[awoke_in_2003]

57. I figured scotch. nt

[4lbs]

58. So that's what was in the special bottle of syrup he was holding! (n/t)

.

[donheld]

60. Wait, we were the ones in pain.

[IggleDoer]

61. Was he forced to run.

He knew that he had pain before agreeing to run. He could have said "no." Any decision to run for president while taking narcotics reflects badly on his decision-making process, if he were elected to higher office.