Johnson suspends campaign, checks into rehab

by: Jay Stevens

Wed Jun 02, 2010 at 08:20:12 AM MST

Former Montana Secretary of State Brad Johnson, a Republican candidate for the Public Service Commission, pleaded guilty Tuesday to drunken driving and said he's checking himself into a monthlong alcohol treatment program.

"It's time for me to get help with a problem that I haven't been able to deal with myself," he said Tuesday.

Johnson also said he has suspended his campaign for public service commissioner in District 5, which covers six counties that include Helena, Kalispell, Polson and the Rocky Mountain Front....

"I made a huge error in judgment May 20th," Johnson said in a statement. "I decided to drive from Bozeman to Helena while I was under the influence of alcohol. ... This has truly been a life-changing experience for me. I will take any and all steps necessary to assure that I never place myself in this situation again."

Johnson's initial reaction to his arrest was to claim he had a "few sips" -- a kind of breezy dismissal of a DUI that seems to be common among the state's conservative politicos -- so it's good to see him man up, admit he's got a problem, and do something about it. I sincerely hope, for his sake and his family's, that treatment works out for him, and he successfully navigates his way through the long road to recovery.

Johnson's acknowledgment that he's an alcoholic and is checking himself into treatment made me think that these patterns of denial I've ascribed to Republican chutzpah may have other, more insidious roots. A quick Google search on "alcoholism denial" turned up this page,  "Denial -- A Symptom of Alcholism?" with this passage:

As the disease progresses and his drinking begins to cause real problems in his life, remarkably the denial likewise increases. Even though his sprees have gotten him into some real trouble, he denies it has anything to do with his drinking. Some say this is purely a defense mechanism.

How is this possible? Usually by the time the disease has gotten to the crisis point, he has developed a support system of family and friends who unwittingly enable him to continue in his denial.

Because they love the affable, clever and witty alcoholic, they act to protect him by covering for him, doing the work that he doesn't get done, paying the bills that he doesn't pay, rescuing him from his scrapes with the law, and generally taking up the responsibilities he has abandoned.

Sound familiar? Remind you of anyone?

All I did was sniff a beer!

by: Jay Stevens

Thu May 27, 2010 at 08:34:32 AM MST

Johnson, 59, said he's convinced he was not in violation of Montana's DUI law, although a breathalyzer test showed his blood-alcohol content at 0.24 percent - three times the legal limit for drunken driving.

"The thing that has really come out of this experience for me is, that I think it's incredibly stupid to have so much as a sip of alcohol and get behind the wheel," he said. "I'll never let it happen again."

With a BAC three times over the legal limit, that means, as Pogie points out, 12 to 15 beers...

At a .24 BAC, Johnson would be "feeling dazed/confused or otherwise disoriented. May need help to stand/walk....Blackouts are likely at this level so you may not remember what has happened."

Doesn't Johnson's excuse sound familiar?

Scott Boggio, after breathing a .14 BAC during the 2007 legislative session: "Well, I guess that, you know, anyone who goes out for dinner and has a few drinks along with their meal can get a DUI." (At a .14 BAC, Boggio would be experiencing "Gross motor impairment and lack of physical control. Blurred vision and major loss of balance....Judgment and perception are severely impaired."

Greg Barkus' lawyer, on having a .16 BAC an hour after the Flathead Lake Boat crash: ""We adamantly disagree with those alleged levels set forth in the charging document....We have several witnesses that will testify that Mr. Barkus was not impaired at the time of the accident." At a .16 BAC, Barkus would be experiencing impairment and lack of physical control, blurred vision and loss of balance, and "The drinker has the appearance of a 'sloppy drunk.'"

What? Is there a Republican boot camp somewhere that teaches GOP lawmakers a strategy of denial to dismiss DUIs?

.14% BAC is "a few drinks with dinner" according to Rep. Scott Boggio

by: Matt Singer

Wed Mar 21, 2007 at 09:23:38 AM MST

Now, I'm sure I've been way drunker than .14% BAC in the past, so that's not what shocks me, but I've also had the chance to use home breatalyzers in the past and on a casual night of drinking, it's actually not that easy to hit .08%, much less nearly twice that. According to this BAC calculator, if a 180 pound man was drinking over the course of three hours (a long dinner, with a drink before hand), he'd need to consumer roughly 8 drinks on the rocks to get to this point.

Even stranger, his companion that evening was Rep. Elsie Arntzen of Billings, who is a member the Yellowstone County DUI Task Force. She says she had no idea he was impaired. That's a bit odd -- you'd think a DUI Task Force member would have some notion of how this drink-to-BAC stuff would work.

The first comment at the Gazette's website runs through these relevant numbers and makes it clear that most people are unlikely to fall for Boggio's numbers game. If Rep. Scott Boggio ate dinner, he was almost certainly in the 7-8 drinks range. Either he or Rep. Arntzen should have known that was too many.

The curb hop doesn't help his case.

See also --

• Intelligent Discontent -- The Party of Law and Order Strikes Again


• Montana Netroots -- DUI? Montana Republicans Have Serious Problems

Update -- Should also mention that I just heard that American Research Group (a Republican polling firm, I believe) is doing a poll in Montana on underage drinking legislation. Anyone know more?