Memo to any members of Congress reading this blog...

[dogday]

Check out the kid in the back on the right hand side...

...never, NEVER, ever decide that it's a good idea to spontaneously show up at a college frat party. Especially when you're running for re-election. Especially when the frat party in question isn't even located in your district.

(Oh, and by the way, is that guy in the far right background of the picture doing what we think he's doing -- Oh. My. God. UPDATE: A forensic effort that should be called "CSI:Politics" has found that the man in the back is smoking a "conventional cigarette," and not a "cigarette of mass destruction." )

Anyway, the congressman pictured here (helpful hint: he's the guy with the tie) is U.S. Rep. John Sweeney, a Republican from the Albany suburbs. He was apparently in Schenectady, N.Y. on Friday night attending a wake (could you make this up?), when somewhere around 1 a.m. a friend decided to bring him to the party at nearby Union College.

The Albany Times-Union's blog Capital Confidential nails down the initial story in the school newspaper:

http://www.pnionline.com/dnblog/attytood/archives/003194.html

[station agent]

1. That looks pretty irresponsible

I think it's fair to expect our representatives to stay out of the frathouses... If that was Conyers or or some other Democrat, it woul dbe all over Fox News 24/7.

[NavyDavy]

3. ditto!

I just said the same thing on this post....

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1046437

[dogday]

5. You are right

Had this been any Democrat, we would of heard about it straight 24/7 for the next 2 weeks...

[newyawker99]

12. Hi station agent!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[rucky]

2. Unless he rolls perfect doobies...

I think that's a regular cig.

[LeftHander]

4. Went to a wake....then a party...

Despite the guy being a political letch...I'll have to say when you attend a funeral of a friend...people have different ways of coping with the loss.

I don't think this will effect his ability to be a crappy GOP stooge congressmen one bit....

[SpiralHawk]

6. My Foresnsic conclusion

As someone who smoked cigarettes for over 30 years (but no more, thank Gitchee Manitou), and who hung out with hundreds of other smokers over the years, I can report INFALLIABLY (TM) that no cigarette smoker ever holds his ciggie the way the dude in the picture is.

That is a spliff. No doubt about it. I am so sure I would wager one of my nicotine-scarred lungs on it.

[dogday]

8. He is taking a huge draw off of it

and you don't do that with a cig...

[Skinner]

9. TPM Muckraker has the close-up

It's a cigarette:

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/000493.php

[Dhalgren]

10. Have you ever heard of "reloading" a cigarette? A lot of college

age kids don't want to buy rolling papers because of the stigma. So they buy the cheapest cigarettes they can find, dump out the tobacco and "reload" the shell with reefer. I'm not saying that this guy in the picture has done that, but he is tokin' it like that's the case...

[SpiralHawk]

11. RE-LOADER Alert !

Official Re-loader Probability: HIGH

VERY HIGH

[nuxvomica]

7. I recognized him immediately

That's my very own representative, who is slated for forced retirement this November in what many will call an upset. The seat is not considered "in play" but he will definitely lose to a smart, personable former Clinton administration employee named Kirsten Gillibrand who has already collected more campaign money than all three previous candidates combined and has a terrific campaign ad about (S)weeney vacationing for pay at a ski resort (in Utah!) with lobbyists. I think he must know he's going down this year and just doesn't care.