Drug-bashing RI Republican charged with drug use

[RamboLiberal]

Source: Raw Story

Robert Watson, a high-ranking Republican state legislator in Rhode Island, is in hot water after being charged with driving under the influence of marijuana and possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia. Drug charges alone would be bad enough for a public official, but Watson, Rhode Island's House minority leader, is still remembered for his controversial anti-drug, anti-gay and anti-immigrant remarks.

In February, Watson said the Rhode Island legislature had their priorities right "if you are a Guatemalan gay man who likes to gamble and smokes marijuana."

Watson was a guest on a radio show soon after the luncheon where he made the misstep, and in response to the outcry over his comments said, “I reject the suggestion that it's insulting." He went on to say that lawmakers were "preoccupied with a number of issues, primarily social issues," when Watson thought they should focus on the economy.

"I apologize when appropriate and/or necessary," Watson told the Providence Journal in February. "I identify this situation as representing neither circumstance."



Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/04/25/drug-bashing-ri-republican-charged-with-drug-use/

[sakabatou]

1. Oh, the irony!

[timtom]

39. And the hubris!

[TacticalPeek]

2. Poor thing.

:smoke:

[GomezLives]

3. Usually dont see the goopers with the hippie lettuce

[dotymed]

16. Actually they are usually caught

with hard drugs and/or in gay trysts. Hypocrisy at its zenith. But we all (should) know by now that they say and act (in public) like their corporate sponsors want them to. They are paid spokespeople who preach the gospel of lies for their corporate sponsors.
Unfortunately, many of our Democratic pols do the same thing although they do not seem to be as aberrant in their private lives.

[bertman]

25. Where I live, most of the working class GOP'ers I know smoke the weed, mon.

[Stumbler]

4. Keeping my fingers crossed he got it from a gay Guatemalan....

Layers upon layers....
:smoke:

[efhmc]

26. Funny.

[me b zola]

57. ...that he won it on a bet with a gay Guatemalan

:smoke:

[Lasher]

5. How Republican of him.

I wonder if he'll think an apology is appropriate and/or necessary now.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

23. I doubt it, but he WILL make a public appearance

in about a week or two, informing the news watching public of his reconciliation with jeeezus.

If anyone is offended, they may take comfort in the awareness that jeeezus forgives him.

He will ask us to pray for him.

Republican backed judges will quietly shuttle him past legal consequences....but they're not activist judges, no.

He will not resign.

[xxqqqzme]

55. He won't announce drug rehab.

That is so 2004, I guess.

[valerief]

27. He'll "take full responsibility" for his actions, whatever that means. nt

[indy legend]

33. Canned GOP apology-"I am sorry if my poor judgment offended anyone.This is not intended to be

a factual apology".

[Humboldt_Homegrown]

43. How Republican of him.

And I thought most Republicans were Alcoholics(like Bonner)

[Lasher]

44. 420 friendly, heh.

Had to look it up.

Lasher

[jberryhill]

6. "Mis-step"? That's a hilarious line

The only people who wouldn't think that's funny are more uptight than gun-toting militia members who want to secede from the Union because they can't read a birth certificate.

Hell, if I had my druthers, I could definitely see hanging out and playing some poker with a gay stoner from Guatemala.

As opposed to say, this asshole.

[harmonicon]

7. Where's his birth certificate? I bet he's Guatemalan. nt.

[Judi Lynn]

8. GOP legislator busted for pot after saying Democrats cater to gay pot-smoking Guatemalan gamblers

Mon Apr 25, 2011 at 03:05 PM PDT.
GOP legislator busted for pot after saying Democrats cater to gay pot-smoking Guatemalan gamblers
by Jed Lewison
for Daily Kos.

http://images1.dailykos.com.nyud.net:8090/i/user/191280/robertwatson.jpg

Robert Watson, Republican Minority Leader
of the Rhode Island State House

~snip~
Earlier this year, Rhode Island House Minority Leader Robert A. Watson (R) garnered attention when he made insensitive remarks about the General Assembly’s work at a meeting of the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce. Watson stated, “I suppose if you’re a gay man from Guatemala who gambles and smokes pot, you probably think that we’re onto some good ideas here.” He was quickly forced to apologize.
Yet last Friday Watson’s bigoted comment took an ironic twist. The state lawmaker was pulled over at a routine police checkpoint in East Haven, Connecticut. Police quickly arrested him when he appeared to be driving under the influence and possessing marijuana.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/04/25/970084/-GOP-legislator-busted-for-pot-after-saying-Democrats-cater-to-gay-pot-smoking-Guatemalan-gamblers?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+dailykos%2Findex+%28Daily+Kos%29

[Zambero]

53. He was plenty worried about catering to gays, gamblers & Guatemalans

Worried that those particular groups would lay claim to his fave street drugs, leaving him in short supply.

[truthisfreedom]

9. How long before we find out he's in a homosexual relationship with his illegal immigrant gardener?

Seriously hilarious.

[grahamhgreen]

30. +1

[NCcoast]

37. You beat me to it

Given the standard level of GOP hypocrisy I'd be willing to bet there's a gay Guatemalan gambler lurking in this man's closet. Any takers?

I used to be shocked at the breathtaking level of hypocrisy in the GOP. Then the light came on for me. Hypocrisy is the mortar that holds the whole structure together. Without laying and hypocrisy they'd be forced to face the fact that they're just like everyone else. And accepting themselves and others and tolerating our common human tendencies is unacceptable. Therefore hiding and laying about what they consider unacceptable behavior, in themselves and others, is morally superior to tolerance. You wonder why all of these GOP assholes who've been caught with hookers, cruising public bathrooms, molesting children, writing books about superior 'virtues' while gambling naked in private casino rooms with big glasses of brown liquor surrounded by naked show girls, etc., aren't more fully ostracized by the pack. Because if they're doing these things, at least they're laying about it and condemning others for the same behavior. Laying about and condemning the unapproved behaviors you're engaged in preserves the facade of moral superiority.

This probably isn't a revelation to most folks. But I was raised by a republican and I had a little trouble resolving the issue.

[HankyDubs]

10. He was doing research!

You dang commu-progressive Alinskyists are so cynical.

[Nossida]

11. Oh the Humanity of it all.........................

Another conservative Goodie 2 Shoes bites the dust.

How many young men in his district, are in jail,
for exactly the same "crime"?

with his blessings.

[HillbillyBob]

31. How many young men has he personally corrupted ?

[No Elephants]

12. " high-ranking Republican state legislator in Rhode Island" What an oxymoron!

[trud]

14. He's the Minority Leader, what's not high-ranking about that? n/t

[era veteran]

13. What other nifty secrets are you hiding.

[dotymed]

15. Rethuglican Family values......

pass that joint....
Amazing that it seems that Progressives politicians (not many) are rarely identified with drug use even though they usually do not rail against it.
George Orwell just got the date wrong.

[City Lights]

17. The art of hypocrisy is taught in Republicanism 101. nt

[hobbit709]

18. It's a given that whenever a Republican opens his mouth, he's projecting.

[deacon]

19. He "mis-smoked" n/t

[grandpamike1]

20. What's the surprise

another GOP hypocrite gets caught using/doing what he railed against. It has been shown many times that the strongest voices against another persons behavior, is usually what the decrier has been in the closet about.

[Leftist Agitator]

22. You are 100% correct.

And welcome to DU!

:hi:

[madokie]

21. I'm glad it was pot a more peaceful drug

than crank or cocaine or heroin that he was using. Those three of I speak will make an addict do some crazy shit to get some when they're out of their crutch.

rec
I hope they throw his sorry ass in jail though just like the others who has gone to jail with his blessing. fuck him

[trud]

24. maybe

Since he got caught in Connecticut. In RI you basically get a free pass on even many multiple DUIs. Even if you kill someone while driving drunk, you just get a slap on the wrist. Some cretin with countless moving violations and DUIs killed two elderly ladies awhile back and is likely to get out after two years. It's kind of an astronomical event that she even got any jail time.

Our magnificent General Assembly even wants to wipe criminal records for everything, even violent felonies, after a few years. One guess why.

[bdamomma]

28. he's probably not the only one who is using drugs either

repug family values again. ha!

[Ganja Ninja]

35. Repeat after me: "It's only alcohol it's not a drug"

"It's only alcohol it's not a drug":toast:

"It's only alcohol it's not a drug":beer:

"It's only alcohol it's not a drug":puke:

"It's only alcohol it's not a drug":hangover:

[TlalocW]

29. GOP'ers are breathing a sigh of relief

That he just wasn't in a tryst with a gay, gambling, pot-smoking Guatemalan.

I used to think that gay trysts would be what caused the most headaches for the GOP, but I think they're so commonplace (along with heterosexual trysts) that they just groan and mutter, "Sheesh, another one?"

Right now, what would bother them the most was that the other participant was Guatemalan/an immigrant.

TlalocW

[SaveAmerica]

32. Projection thy name is Republican

[SpiralHawk]

34. This is such an essential Republicon Family Values story - Hypocrisy up the wazoo

Hypocrisy is the very soul of republiconism...

Republicon Family Pharisee Values.

As usual.

[Atypical Liberal]

36. Typical Republican behavior.

Say one thing to pander to one set of people, then do what pleases them.

[Blue Owl]

38. Hey man, you ever shoot your country in the foot

ON WEED?

[Hotler]

40. Test all elected officals.

Make them do a hair test and randoms after that.

[NICO9000]

41. Just like the Obama e-mail lady,

I'll bet he calls himself an "imperfect Christian"

:evilgrin:

[SemperEadem]

42. HA HA

asshole.

[Initech]

45. D'oh!!!

[defendandprotect]

46. More lying Republican thugs - the bottom of the barrel raised to the top -- !!

[butterfly77]

47. Drug tests..

for all legislators,congressmen,congresswomen,and senators..what makes them so different.

These liars make all of these nonsense laws against the people when they are doing everything themselves.

We also should be voting to cut their pay and if they get any raises..

[reggie the dog]

48. i am anti drug testing

how are we supposed to build support for decrim if we are kicking all the users out of congress?

[louslobbs]

49. Just add him to the Republican hypocrite list, like Ted Haggard, Larry Craig, Ensign, Gingrich, oh

hell, we'll be here all year, we all know who they are, this is just one more fake, phoney and fraud.
Lou

[nonperson]

50. And a certain morbidly obese governor of a certain Northeast state

Smoked pot regularly in high school but is now inserting his morbidly obese ass between state law and his own shall we say duplicitous position on medical marijuana.

Fucking hypocrite asshole.

[sarcasmo]

51. Legalize it and tax it, Robert Watson is a hypocrite.

[Zambero]

52. Drug basher? Or, maybe he just wants them all for himself

Or perhaps, like Newt he just "works too hard" and needs a bit of worldly diversion every now and then. At any rate, a 21st Century Republican through and through.

[provis99]

54. Don't Republicans usually use crystal meth or oxycontin?

[OnionPatch]

56. Just one more Republican hypocrite.

What else is new?

[Incitatus]

58. I wonder if he was on his way to pick up his prostitute

or if he had just dropped him off.