Very Shifty

So, have we heard the final version of Rep. Patrick Kennedy's story of how he got into a car accident 2:47AM EDT Thursday morning? I doubt it. He says that he doesn't remember the events from Thursday morning, yet the substantive press release Thursday afternoon gave specific details. Something is certainly amiss. Like keeping your story straight. Or the excuses.

Kennedy's statements have numerous inconsistencies, not the least of which relate to his consumption of alcohol.

Kennedy has said that he'll be going back to the Mayo Clinic for drug rehab. Which drugs? His early statements said that he was taking Ambien and Phenergan. Those aren't painkillers. Now, we're hearing that he's going into rehab because of an addiction to pain medications. That's why he crashed the car?

Who prescribed all these medications, and were they for legitimate illnesses, or are we dealing with doctor shopping in addition to all the other issues? That's an unresolved question that someone in the media ought to be tracking down.

Each new statement raises more questions than the prior one. The timeline of his actions isn't quite clear enough to be able to explain when he was supposedly drinking, how much he may have consumed and over how much time, when he took the supposed drugs involved, and other intervening steps.

Still, it is curious that he would check himself into drug rehab for painkillers. Thus far, we've got no reason to believe that painkillers were directly involved in the accident.

This is far from the first time that Kennedy has shown questionable judgment.

Why does the Kennedy clan keep offering up new and often contradictory statements about what happened? Could it be because none of these excuses hold water in light of the evidence showing that Patrick was drinking in the hours before the accident?

For all of Patrick's talk about how he supported and pushed for treatment programs to deal with addictions, it changes absolutely none of the underlying facts. He's trying to shift the focus away from his misdeeds and onto moving targets.

Flopping Aces notes that discrepancy between the way the media handled the drug problems of one Rush Limbaugh and how they're treating Patrick Kennedy. In the former case, the media literally rushed to judgment, sought out and published confidential medical records, and otherwise engaged in a feeding frenzy. Patrick, thankfully, has not had to experience such behavior by the media. No one should have to go through that kind of bad behavior by the media. It is enlightening to see the discrepancies, and one has to wonder what is behind it [here's a hint - media bias and the Kennedy brand was involved].

And that doesn't even begin to touch on the vitriol of the media towards GOPers vs. Democrats. Compare the vitriol directed at Vice President Cheney after his hunting accident where he accidentally shot his friend but didn't immediately contact the press corps to the Kennedy situation. Kennedy hasn't given a straight answer over his actions, changed his story at least two times, and may have not only engaged in DUI, but thwarted and interfered in a criminal investigation.

Others blogging: Hot Air with updates, Flopping Aces, and New England Republican

UPDATE:
American Thinker has an interesting Cynthia McKinney angle, which doesn't bode well for Democrats trying to make GOPers look like they're leading the culture of corruption. There is a smattering of calls coming in for Kennedy to resign. Interestingly, one such call comes from a poster at Daily Kos. Somehow, I don't think that the call to resign will be heeded anytime soon.

UPDATE:
Kennedy is expected to enter rehab overnight.

Some background about the Capitol Police, and some of the problems the department has faced in the past can be found at the NY Times.

Prior coverage: Damage Control, Spot the Misconduct.

Technorati: patrick kennedy, misconduct, capitol police, dui.