WP,pg1: Effect of Obama's Candor Remains to Be Seen: Admitted Trying Cocaine in Memoir

[DeepModem Mom]

Effect of Obama's Candor Remains to Be Seen
Senator Admitted Trying Cocaine in a Memoir Written 11 Years Ago
By Lois Romano
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, January 3, 2007; Page A01


Sen. Barack Obama is near the top of polls on potential Democratic presidential candidates. (By David Mcnew -- Getty Images)

Long before the national media spotlight began to shine on every twist and turn of his life's journey, Barack Obama had this to say about himself: "Junkie. Pothead. That's where I'd been headed: the final, fatal role of the young would-be black man. . . . I got high (to) push questions of who I was out of my mind."

The Democratic senator from Illinois and likely presidential candidate offered the confession in a memoir written 11 years ago, not long after he graduated from law school and well before he contemplated life on the national stage. At the time, 20,000 copies were printed and the book seemed destined for the remainders stacks.

Today, Obama, 45, is near the top of polls on potential Democratic presidential contenders, and "Dreams From My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance" has regularly been on the bestseller lists, with 800,000 copies in print. Taken along with his latest bestseller, "The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream," Obama has become a genuine publishing phenomenon.

Obama's revelations were not an issue during his Senate campaign two years ago. But now his open narrative of early, bad choices, including drug use starting in high school and ending in college, as well as his tortured search for racial identity, are sure to receive new scrutiny.

As a potential candidate, Obama has presented himself as a fresh voice offering a politics of hope. Many say he offers something new in American politics: an African American with a less-than-traditional name who has so far demonstrated broad appeal. What remains to be seen is whether the candor he offered in his early memoir will be greeted with a new-style acceptance by voters....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/02/AR2007010201359.html

[jus_the_facts]

1. only relevant when it's a democrat....never a puke'azoid....

[Rabrrrrrr]

2. Cuz if a Democrat did drugs, or even came close to them, that's bad.

But if a Republican joyously announces that he didn't just use cocaine but abused it, along with alcohol, over a period of many years while AWOL from the military - that shows he's just "regular folk" and you'd want to sit down and have a beer with him and put him in charge of largest, most destructive and potentially earth-and-life-extinguishing arsenal of weapons any human being has ever had control over.

[babylonsister]

3. OMG! He's a "freak" because he tried "Cocaine"! Give me a break.

The fact that he admits to his former foibles should make them die a quiet death. Hell, no, he didn't not 'inhale'! He lived, and was vulnerable, and did what I did. That's refreshing.

[dave_p]

4. Agreed

The American people are past this shit, provided other Democrats don't join the holier-than-thou crusade. No need for panic.

And he's only my #3, so this is not a promotion. ;-)

[MADem]

13. Our boy Ted Kennedy was into that shit for years, and he came out the other side just fine.

It could be that Obama is actually encouraging these foolish stories, so he can do the "Discussed to death, already" response when someone tries to drag it out close to the primaries.

[neuvocat]

5. Better be careful about him.

That drug abuse might damage his brain and he'll make statements that are completely unintelligible. Words will be completely made up. He might declare war on another country by lying to Congress to do it and later on insist that it was the right thing to do.

Oh, sorry. That already happened.

[Eurobabe]

8. LOL

[Pithy Cherub]

15. The present tense still applies!

;)

:applause:

[illinoisprogressive]

6. Like they said, It is old news and not likely to hurt him

How can the gop or other hopefuls hurt him with this when he wrote about it 11 years ago and is still open about it.
I saw him on book tv and he still was very open about it.
It is good for him to be open about anything in his closet before the buzzards sweep down.
W is still in denial of his past. He says he drank abit. He was a drunk and used drugs but, as always, cannot tell the truth.
That is something , I think voters will like because they are sick of the lies of this administration

[Eurobabe]

7. Obama has been honest, unlike the EIGHTBALLPREZ

Who has lied his entire life about his drug use, and had others expunge his records for God only knows what.

Typical Republican hypocrisy I say.

[amitten]

9. Well, Bush used to snort a little himself, as I recall.

This isn't news...

[Eurobabe]

10. My letter to Lois Romano, WaPO

Barack Obama has done one thing George W. Bush will never do - admit to using drugs. Come on, we ALL know Bush is the 'Eight Ball Prez,' and a dry drunk to boot. The Fortunate Son, being the privileged white upper crust that he is, had the right connections to expunge his record of anything that could cause problems in his political future. Obama never had that luxury.

I give Barack Obama major props for being honest. George Bush is still living in a state of denial. About everything.

[pa28]

11. "The first time I noticed George W Bush . . ."

"was when he passed out in my bathtub at the Hyatt Regency in Houston."

Hunter S. Thompson http://news.independent.co.uk/people/profiles/article31028.ece

But I'm sure I'll be reading tons of articles from Peggy Noonan and Newt Gingrich on why Obama's past cocaine use "matters".

:eyes:

[MADem]

12. They're bringing this up yet AGAIN?? Good grief. Wait until the tobacco nazis go after him

then he will really have trouble. You know there's probably a bounty out for a pic of the guy puffing on a Newport....!

[beaconess]

14. Since when is candor supposed to HURT a candidate?

I thought they were SUPPOSED to be truthful. Why is his candor even an issue?

I think this is the media's way of dredging up the drug issue without appearing to be a bunch of hypocrites, since they gave Bush a completely free pass on HIS drug past. They don't want to come out and talk about Obama's past drug use - and risk raising questions about why they ignored Bush's history - so they're couching this in the context of his 11-year old admission.

This is much like the way they often didn't directly report the lurid accusations made against Clinton but reported that OTHER media was reporting it.

[blm]

16. WaPost will focus on past cocaine use but ignore the Downing Street Memos and

Iraq withdrawal votes and senate confirmations with no examination of Obama's contributions to actually IMPORTANT Senate issues.

[beaconess]

17. Great Obama quote re: this issue

When asked, facetiously, whether he inhaled, he replied, "Yeah, I inhaled - that was kind of the point."