Free Republic

Two visiting US Congressmen announced after talks with Syrian leaders on Sunday that they had secured a pledge that jailed dissidents would be freed and said they saw scope for progress in the peace process with Israel. The upbeat note contrasted with that of US President George W. Bush earlier this month who ruled out direct talks with Damascus, saying: "My patience ran out on President (Bashar) al-Assad a long time ago." Senator Arlen Specter, a member of Bush's Republican Party, and Congressman Patrick Kennedy, a Democrat, held talks with both Assad and Foreign Minister Walid Muallem. Kennedy said that...

Two U.S. lawmakers scheduled to meet Thursday with former Pakastani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and President Pervez Musharraf were advised to leave the country after Bhutto's assassination. Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., said in a telephone interview from his Islamabad hotel room that he and Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I., were to dine with Musharraf and meet later in the night with Bhutto. He said he heard about the attack on Bhutto as he was dressing for the dinner with Musharraf. "Our foreign policy had relied on her presence as a stabilizing force," Specter said, emotionally describing her death as "a real,...

WASHINGTON - Two U.S. lawmakers scheduled to meet Thursday with former Pakastani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and President Pervez Musharraf were advised to leave the country after Bhutto's assassination. Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., said in a telephone interview from his Islamabad hotel room that he and Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I., were to dine with Musharraf and meet later in the night with Bhutto. He said he heard about the attack on Bhutto as he was dressing for the dinner with Musharraf. "Our foreign policy had relied on her presence as a stabilizing force," Specter said, emotionally describing her death as...

Rhode Island Rep. Patrick Kennedy said Tuesday he's not returning $6,600 in donations he got from Norman Hsu, a prominent Democratic donor whose criminal past was recently revealed. Several top Democrats, including 2008 presidential candidates Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama, Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry and Kennedy's father, Sen. Edward Kennedy, have said they will return Hsu's donations or give them to charity. Rep. Kennedy will keep the money because there is no indication that Hsu's contributions to him were illegal, according to his chief of staff, Adam Brand. "We are complying with all applicable (Federal Election Commission) rules and...

(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, today released its 2006 list of Washington’s “Ten Most Wanted Corrupt Politicians.” The list, in alphabetical order, includes: 1. Jack Abramoff, Former Lobbyist – 2. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) 3. Former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham (R-CA) 4. Former Rep. Tom Delay (R-TX) 5. Former Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) 6. Rep. Denny Hastert (R-IL) 7. Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-FL) 8. Rep. William “Dollar Bill” Jefferson (D-LA) 9. Former Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH) 10. Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) 6 Dishonorable Mentions: 1. Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) 2....

NORTH PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- There's only one question Rep. Patrick Kennedy really answers this campaign. It came up at an ice cream social. It's raised on the street. He even hears it in bedrock Democratic neighborhoods. "How are you feeling?" asked a white-haired woman at a high-rise for the elderly. "I've never felt better," he said. "One day at a time." It's an answer some people - let alone politicians under intense media scrutiny - couldn't give after the year he's had: checking himself into a rehabilitation center, crashing his car at 3 a.m. into a security barrier outside the...

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., chats with U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I., right, before addressing a crowd on healthcare issues at Landmark Medical Center in Woonsocket, R.I., Friday, June 23, 2006. Pelosi appeared at the hospital, as a show of support, with Kennedy, a week after he was sentenced for driving under the influence of prescription drugs. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

The only thing missing at Patches Kennedy’s press conference yesterday was his father’s post-Chappaquiddick neck brace. “I’ve always said,” the dim lad began, “I wanted to take full responsibility for my actions - ” Full responsibility - but no mug shot. Full responsibility amounted to a suspended license - wink, wink - and $350 in fines and court costs. Do you think Patches had to arrange a payment schedule with the probation office? “Today in court, I accepted the consequences of my actions.” Riiiight. That poor window-washer who iced the seagull high above Devonshire Street is looking at more time...

Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.) pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of drugs as a part of an extensive agreement the lawmaker reached with the District of Columbia Office of the Attorney General. “I’ve always said that I wanted to take full responsibility for my actions. Today in court I did just that,” Kennedy said in a brief meeting with reporters after appearing before D.C. Superior Court Magistrate Judge Aida Melendez. “I accepted the consequences of my actions. I’ve cooperated fully with the Capitol Police and with the attorney general’s office. “I think they’ve done a fantastic job. … I...

WASHINGTON - Rep. Patrick Kennedy (news, bio, voting record) has reached a deal with prosecutors to plead guilty to a charge of driving under the influence of prescription drugs in connection with his middle-of-the-night car crash last month near the U.S. Capitol. Two additional charges of reckless driving and failure to exhibit a driving permit will be dismissed under the plea agreement. Announcing this, Kennedy's chief of staff, Sean Richardson, said the Rhode Island Democrat would appear in District of Columbia Superior Court Tuesday afternoon "to accept the consequences of his actions." "He is looking forward to closing this chapter,"...

"Rep. Patrick Kennedy has reached a deal with prosecutors to plead guilty to a charge of driving under the influence of prescription drugs... "

Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I., center, speaks to Rep. Sam Farr, D-Calif., left, during the House Appropriations Committee meeting on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, June 6, 2006, in Washington. Kennedy, the Rhode Island Democrat can expect the scrutiny to hit new levels as he seeks to put his personal life and political career back on track after crashing his car and spending nearly a month in drug treatment at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. Seated at the back is Rep. John Murtha, D-Penn. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Rhode Island Republicans have received piles of “hate mail” from supporters of U.S. Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy, angry that the GOP has called for the troubled six-term congressman to step down. “This has clearly hit a raw nerve somewhere,” Rhode Island GOP spokesman Chuck Newton told the Herald.“We’ve received mountains of hate mail from all over.” Most of the letters and emails include angry and in some cases obscene tirades blasting party leaders for pushing for Kennedy’s ouster as a result of his legal troubles, Newton said. Republicans initially called for Kennedy to step down the day after he slammed...

Fresh from rehab, Rep. Patrick Kennedy said yesterday he wants to be treated like an African-American from Washington if and when he gets charged for crashing his car on Capitol Hill. Denying that he was drunk and or that he asked the Capitol Police for preferential treatment, Kennedy, a Rhode Island congressman, said he's prepared "in terms of bookings, in terms of mug shots, fingerprints, whatever they might have me do." "It's what anyone else would have done to them if they were an African-American in Anacostia," Kennedy said in a shaky voice, referring to the mostly minority neighborhood in...

Patrick Kennedy, fresh from his second stint in drug rehab, yesterday said he's building recovery support networks .....and will continue to undergo treatment for his addiction to painkillers. ........ the younger son of Sen. Ted Kennedy - entered the drug and alcohol treatment at the Mayo Clinic May 5, a day after he slammed his Mustang into a security barrier near the U.S. Capitol. An admitted binge drinker and pain-pill abuser, Kennedy, 38, had been treated at the clinic over the Christmas holidays.........Kennedy told reporters, "I know that I am doing everything I need to do to succeed."

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy said Monday he was feeling good after nearly a month in drug rehabilitation and was looking forward to getting back to work. "I can tell you today, I feel confident about my health, positive about my future, and passionate about my work representing the people of Rhode Island," the Rhode Island Democrat said in a speech at Brown University on the future of mental health care and addiction treatment. It was his first public appearance since being released Friday from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. The six-term congressman checked into the clinic...

Mentioned on Howie Carr show, and this is from the show's site: A Kennedy Sobriety Checkpoint. (I was in Rhode Island the other day and I drove confidently, knowing Patches was nowhere near there.)

To: National Desk, Political Reporter Contact: Jesse R. Binnall, 703-582-7924, or Eugene Delgaudio, 703-901-2247; Office 703-845-1808, both of Public Advocate; Web: http://publicadvocateusa.org/ WASHINGTON, May 29 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Today, a non-profit group, Public Advocate, announced their "Kennedy Sobriety Checkpoint" has been a success. Checkpoints on Capitol Hill in Washington to protect citizens against Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy (D-Ma.) or Congressman Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.) resulted in no impaired drivers named Congressman or Senator Kennedy being stopped this weekend. "Citizen volunteers have responded to the call and we have erected checkpoints at several intersections to prevent any Kennedy from driving in an...

On the lookout The group Public Advocate of the United States said yesterday that it had set up sobriety checkpoints on Capitol Hill over the holiday weekend to protect the public against Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, Massachusetts Democrat, and his son, Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy, Rhode Island Democrat. "Citizen volunteers have responded to the call, and we have erected checkpoints at several intersections to prevent any Kennedy from driving in an impaired manner on Capitol Hill. We selected the long Memorial Day weekend due to the increased potential for a repeat of earlier car accidents," said Eugene Delgaudio, president of...

Dateline: 10 May 2006 It’s three AM. You are driving your Ford Mustang convertible without any lights. You crash into a police barrier. It sounds like you are in trouble, but it gets worse. You stagger out of the car – perhaps this is not surprising, after the crash. But some accounts say your eyes were red and you smelled of alcohol. You offer what can only be described as a ridiculous explanation. You are rushing, you say, to an engagement at work. But in reality your place of work closed hours ago. It’s only a few weeks since your...

Patrick Kennedy has been a party animal for quite some time, according to the National Enquirer, which comes up with some never-before-seen photos of the Rhode Island congressman partying like a rock star in the late ’80s and early ’90s. Now there’s a shock . . . . The 38-year-old son of Sen. Ted Kennedy, who just checked himself into rehab for prescription-drug addiction after an early-morning car crash in Washington, D.C., dressed up like disgraced pop star Michael Jackson - complete with blackface - for a party at his father’s Virginia home in 1989. “He applied dark makeup to...

TODDTALK WEEKEND POLL Should Patrick Kennedy resign from Congress? --Yes. He's an embarrassment. --No. He can still serve Rhode Island.

During a briefing with reporters yesterday, Majority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) said he was aware of Rep. Patrick Kennedy’s (D-R.I,) substance-abuse problem and had “noticed it before.” In response to a question about the handling of Kennedy’s early-morning car accident by the Capitol Police, Boehner indicated that it would be easier to make a judgment when all of the facts are released. He then elaborated on the question, saying he had known of Kennedy’s problem. “For those who have been around here, worked here, he has been fighting this disease for a long time, as has been testified to by...

PAY attention. The so-called probe into the D.C. cops who helped zonko Patrick Kennedy home instead of slamming him into the jug? Ain't to be no deepdeepdeep probe. Like more a probe-let. The Capitol fuzz have always been congressional custodians. He isn't the first representative they've blotted up. Many a congresscreature has slurped one too many and been lent a helping patrol car. The Kennedy name just spotlighted this more than others. So, this probe will result in zero. Ain't nobody looking to really run through a thorough investigation. Remember, you heard it here first.

A HUMILIATING accident. An apparent memory lapse. A sudden, emotional confession. Representative Patrick Kennedy's car crash on Capitol Hill early Thursday and a news conference a day later had a familiar rhythm, especially for those who study addiction or know it firsthand. Mr. Kennedy, a six-term Democrat from Rhode Island, said that his addiction was to prescription medication and that he planned to seek treatment at an addiction clinic, as he had done before. "I struggle every day with this disease, as do millions of Americans," said Mr. Kennedy, who is 38. But will a cure that apparently didn't take...

Tuesday, May 9, 2006 9:43 a.m. EDT Dems Renominate Patrick Kennedy from Rehab Less than a week after he crashed his car into a Capitol Hill police barrier, rehabbing Rhode Island Rep. Patrick Kennedy received a rousing endorsement from the state Democratic Party, who touted him as a competent, if flawed, public servant at their convention Monday night. In a speech described by the Associated Press as "moving," state Representative Paul Crowley said Kennedy's ability to do his job should not be questioned - downplaying the fact that the he's had two car crashes in the last month, hit himself...

Party endorses lawmaker receiving drug treatment after Capitol crash Updated: 10:03 a.m. ET May 9, 2006 WEST WARWICK, R.I. - Democrats endorsed an absent Rep. Patrick Kennedy, being treated for addiction to prescription pain drugs, for re-election Monday night at their state convention. Kennedy checked into the Mayo Clinic on Friday for his second stay in less than five months after a middle-of-the-night car crash near the Capitol on Thursday that he said he couldn’t remember. It was his second car crash in three weeks. Republicans have said Kennedy should step aside because he can’t fulfill his duties. But Democratic...

Howie Carr has done it again! I'd like to think it's a rare photo...Patches & Fatboy loaded down with coolers, but I'd guess there are more of these than of the Statue of Liberty. Capn' Carr is giving away these magnets in a shameless self promotion of his radio show. Howie, c'mon! The poor guy's got a disease! It's not his fault, and it was a prescription, not like David, or Skakel, or Michael, or the old Patches, or I guess any of them. Cut the victim some slack. As to a free magnet of these models of integrity and...

by Mark Finkelstein May 9, 2006 Some people might think that striking a police officer, and almost striking a police car while driving under the influence of . . . something, are serious offenses. Not Chris Matthews. Here's how Matthews introduced this evening's Hardball, running down the rap sheet of various government officials who have had run-ins with the law in recent times: "Tonight, putting on the squeeze, putting on the sleaze. Another House aide cops a plea in the Abramoff case. "Dusty" Foggo quits over the poker-and-prostitute scam. Bill Jefferson gets tagged by a witness wearing a wire. Claude...

This post from Mark Levin: Poor Patrick 05/09 10:21 AM The rehabilitation of Patrick Kennedy has begun. No, I don’t mean his recovery from his various additions. I mean his political rehabilitation. Get this drivel from today’s Boston Herald: Patrick Kennedy is carrying a torch for a now-married ex-galpal and his broken heart may be the reason he’s gone off the rails, friends say. He’s lonely,” said one of Patches’ Rhode Island pals. “He’s a mess, and it’s really sad. It really is.” Word is that Patches pines for his ex, Tatiana Platt, an America Online exec he dated for...

Patrick Kennedy is carrying a torch for a now-married ex-galpal and his broken heart may be the reason he’s gone off the rails, friends say. “He’s lonely,” said one of Patches’ Rhode Island pals. “He’s a mess, and it’s really sad. It really is.” Word is that Patches pines for his ex, Tatiana Platt, an America Online exec he dated for more than a year until she left him for her now-hubby, renowned architect Campion Platt. We hear that Tatiana has been defending her former paramour, saying the Rhode Island congressman has gotten a “bad rap” after a suspicious car...

Rhode Island Democrats are expected to endorse Representative Patrick Kennedy for re-election when they meet tonight in West Warwick. Party members will endorse candidates for Congress and the state's top jobs -- governor, secretary of state, general treasurer and attorney general. Kennedy has checked himself into the Mayo Clinic for treatment for addiction to prescription drugs following a Thursday car accident in Washington. He says he can't remember driving to Capitol Hill or crashing his car. Kennedy's doctors say he was taking Phenergan for stomach and intestinal problems and Ambien, a commonly prescribed sleeping medication. Police say he appeared intoxicated.

If his last name wasn't Kennedy, would Patches have been elected? Re-elected? Given that ride home? Would Cynthia McKinney be offered that ride home, and no breathalyzer, if she were a Kennedy?

It's hard to imagine that Patrick Kennedy would have gotten elected to Congress a dozen years ago without his last name. It's equally hard to imagine that the media would be going wild about his late-night car crash and prescription drug addiction if he weren't a Kennedy. The only lingering mystery is why national news organizations didn't pounce earlier on the Rhode Island Democrat's long history of alcohol and drug abuse, depression and a series of downright embarrassing incidents.

Former navy SEAL Dave Rogers will be on Fox News today at 5pm to talk about Patrick Kennedy.

It can't be argued that the Patrick Kennedy adventure on wheels is being ignored by the media. But part of the coverage has been suffused in a bit of overweening Kennedy-dynasty sympathy. Washington Post reporter/columnist Dana Milbank, who danced a jig of mockery in orange hunter clothes over Dick Cheney's shooting accident, wrote in Saturday's Washington Post about the "miserable character" who suffered after the crash: Kennedy tried to ignore the din of shouted questions as he walked to the door, but he couldn't avoid the woman in the front row who asked if he would resign. He shook his...

****This has been another Kennedys-make-me-sick-week First, Sen. Ted Kennedy, normally a staunch defender of the environment, is reported to be against offshore windmills because they would spoil the view from his luxury seaside digs. Now his son smashes up his car a block from the Capitol, appears visibly drunk to witnesses and is not given a sobriety test. It is my fervent hope that this decency-dodging dynasty is voted out of office at the next election. East Meadow **** I guess the Kennedy money will buy Patrick's way out of this one, like it did Teddy years ago. Manhattan ****.....the...

Poor Patrick. It's not what people would be expected to say about a rich kid who sailed into a House seat on the strength of his family name. But in Washington, where politics is both profession and blood sport, Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.) has long been seen as a figure of sadness. "Most people feel sorry for him because he's obviously troubled," said a veteran Democratic consultant after the 38-year-old Kennedy announced his return to drug rehab after crashing his car on Capitol Hill. "He walks around as though he has the weight of the world on his shoulders," the...

PATRICK KENNEDY Witness saw "glazed eyes." PORTSMOUTH, R.I. - Two weeks before he crashed his Mustang into a security barrier, a glossy-eyed Patrick Kennedy drove against traffic and collided with another car in a RI drugstore parking lot. "He was swaying and his eyes were glazed," Sheila Lash, 75, of Newport, told the Boston Gobe. "Then he said the most unlikely thing: 'I'm so sorry for the fuss.' " .....he had the earlier accident on April 15 while driving his Crown Victoria close to his house in Portsmouth. Lash - said she first noticed Kennedy when he zoomed out of...

As U.S. Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy (D-R.I.) spent his first day in rehab yesterday, one of the world’s leading experts on drug addiction - who was invited by Kennedy to speak at an upcoming conference - said there are 2 million Americans like the congressman who abuse prescription narcotics. “It’s a major problem in this country, the abuse of prescription medication, and we are not recognizing it,” said Dr. Nora D. Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, part of the National Institutes of Health. Kennedy checked into the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., Friday evening after crashing...

MIDI - RHODE ISLAND'S IT FOR MEWe have a representative...who knows not where he's been Perhaps it was cocaine or pills...or a fifth of daddy's gin He drives his convertible...along our pretty shores He is a good liberal guy...we couldn't ask for more We really love the Kennedys...although they're often drunk Well, at least they didn't find a dead girl in his trunk Godspeed, Patrick...Godspeed, Patrick...may rehab work this time Rhode Island is forgiving you for each and every crime He stands up for all causes Green...although we all can see His car has a big V-8 with not...

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Rep. Patrick Kennedy was still in college when he took elected office as a state representative. Nearly two decades later, he has spent his entire adult life as a lawmaker. (snip) In Congress, Kennedy has pushed for greater mental health care coverage, citing his own struggles with depression and addiction. (snip) A tennis player and avid reader of biographies and autobiographies, Kennedy has a passion for sailing. "He can go out and be out of the public eye. It's tranquil, and it's something he enjoys," Marcella said. (snip) "He's a warm, nice, optimistic, kind person. That's what...

Investigation Continues as Congressman Enters Mayo Clinic May 5, 2006 — Capitol Police have taken disciplinary action against a watch commander for the handling of Rep. Patrick Kennedy's car accident, acting Capitol Police Chief Christopher McGaffin said. Lou Cannon of of the Fraternal Order of Police for the District of Columbia said there are questions about whether Rep. Patrick Kennedy received special treatment. (ABC News) McGaffin said the incident was improperly delayed due to "poor judgment" on the part of police managers and that a field sobriety test should have been administered to Kennedy after his car hit a barrier...

MADD Supports Inquiry Into Lawmaker’s Crash Contacts: Heidi Castle at 469-420-4545 or heidi.castle@madd.org Statement for attribution to Glynn R. Birch, National President,Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD): On May 4, 2006 , U.S. Representative Patrick Kennedy was involved in a traffic crash outside the U.S. House of Representatives in Washington , DC . Fortunately, neither Congressman Kennedy, police officers nor others were hurt in the crash. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) supports the United States Capitol Police Department’s decision to thoroughly review this incident and examine the Department’s current procedures concerning crashes where impairment due to alcohol or drug use is...

Unless some people have been vacationing on another planet, just about everyone is aware of the latest Kennedy Clan scandal -- or what should be a scandal. Actually the story is scandalous because it illustrates how too many members of the elite news media are blatantly biased. Somehow the term "double-standard" seems to be an incredible understatement. The Kennedy story is a perfect example of the new trend in news coverage by the mainstream media -- situational journalism. This particular scandal has more to do with whom a story involving drug abuse is about. If the "perp" is a conservative...

WASHINGTON - Detectives probing U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy’s early-morning car wreck interviewed workers at the Hawk ’n’ Dove bar yesterday while rank-and-file Capitol police are pushing prosecutors to throw the book at the well-connected pol. “Mr. Kennedy, by his own admission, was operating under the influence of narcotics, which is a violation,” said Lou Cannon, president of the Capitol police union. Cannon said detectives probing the Rhode Island Democrat’s 2:45 a.m. wreck visited several watering holes along Pennsylvania Avenue yesterday, asking bartenders and waitstaff if they saw Kennedy in the hours before the congressman crashed his Mustang convertible into a...

Ambien, wrecks, Kennedys Imagine the terror that Mr. Patrick Kennedy must have felt, having gone to bed after ingesting a handful of Ambien, as he came to in his automobile, fully dressed, barreling along, the radio on psywarop, feeling slightly giddy, having no idea where he was going, wondering why his automobile lights were off, as the impact clock quickly ticked down, looking up and spying a parked Capitol police car heaving into view through his dirty windshield. Remembering to move his foot toward the break pedal, he continued pumping it madly, feeling no immediate effect, swerving to avoid the...

NEWPORT, R.I. -- A woman who witnessed a two-car collision involving Representative Patrick J. Kennedy outside a Portsmouth, R.I., drugstore last month said he had been weaving and driving aggressively beforehand and was impaired when she confronted him outside his car afterward. ''He was swaying, and his eyes were glazed," said Sheila Lash, 75, of Newport, who alleges that Kennedy briefly drove against traffic on April 15 before he turned his car into the CVS parking lot and collided with another car turning in from the opposite direction. ''Then he said the most unlikely thing: 'I'm so sorry for the...

Cynthia McKinney’s reaction to the obvious and blatant favoritism enjoyed by Patrick Kennedy is likely to be something to savor. She is already on the record about the indignities she received at the hand of a white cop. But now she sees that for the white boy, supervisors stepped in, relieving the officers at the scene and driving the staggering Kennedy home. She faces potential legal jeopardy, and now a rich white boy walks away without so much as a breathalyzer test from circumstances that would ordinarily demand a drunk driving investigation. At least one cop reportedly says he smelled...

U.S. Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy was with a woman at his Capitol Hill home Wednesday night before he smashed his Mustang convertible into a barricade near a House office building, according to a published report. “She tried to dissuade me” from leaving the house, he told The Providence Journal. “And she wishes she had done a better job dissuading me.” The unmarried lawmaker declined to give the woman’s name and says he only knows she tried to stop him because she has since told him so. Kennedy, 38, spoke to the paper before heading to Minnesota for addiction treatment at...