[cyncooper]

Bush acknowledges DUI conviction in '76

Milwaukee (per my memory)

MILWAUKEE -- For the first time, George W. Bush acknowledged Thursday night that he was arrested and pleaded guilty to driving under the influence in 1976 in Maine.

~snip~

The 24-year-old DUI arrest was first reported Thursday by a Portland, Maine, television station, just five days before the general election.

~snip~

As I noted: Allegation and acknowledgement made on the *same day*. Not days of carefully crafted responses and hedging, but a straightforward answer to the story.

[Bluntpoint]

Snip:

"MSNBC and CNN carried live coverage of a Bush campaign speech in Grand Rapids, Michigan obviously waiting for Bush to say something publicly about the arrest. At the end of the speech, Bush spent 8 seconds mentioning he had made "some mistakes" in his life. The soundbite played again and again for the rest of the day."


He did not come right out and tackle the story.