I recall people who were "on the floor" (of the Senate) at the time he was "in the cups" a lot before he took the backward turn. That's what I see of VA's Warner, too.
Darn, I made it through Buckley...to have you use the unfamiliar term "in the cups." Does it mean drinking, or does it have to do with his 2nd wife (who was 30 years younger)?
Not that there is anything wrong with that.