I'm just sayin'........
http://www.salon.com/news/col/cona/1999/08/24/bush/By Joe Conason
Aug. 24, 1999 | With his nebulous responses to the question of whether he has ever used illegal narcotics, George W. Bush may be doing the nation a great service. The spectacle of the current feeding frenzy is as ugly as always -- but for once the "politics of personal destruction" may encourage an overdue debate about real public policy issues:
Are the laws that send thousands of people to prison every year for drug possession administered fairly? Is justice served by incarcerating young, nonviolent drug offenders? Should the courts mandate treatment rather than imprisonment for people who make the kind of "mistake" that the Republican front-runner has now all but admitted?
Journalists playing the gotcha game delight in pointing out the contradictions in Bush's selective discussion of his own character and behavior. He is eager to inform us that he is a faithful spouse and a teetotalling churchgoer, but he is offended when we inquire about his "youthful indiscretions" -- giving off a whiff of hypocrisy that smells all too familiar at this point.
Already, however, the arguments over what presidential candidates should have to reveal about their past personal misbehavior sound shopworn and frivolous. It's obviously time for the press corps to try shouldering a little more intellectual weight.
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