CINCINNATI -- The Dearborn County Prosecutor's Office released video Friday from the arrest of Ohio State Rep. Robert Mecklenborg.
The video begins with Mecklenborg being pulled over by an Indiana state trooper just before midnight on April 22 on U.S. 50 in Lawrenceburg for a broken headlight.
Once pulled over, the trooper asks Mecklenborg the location from where he was coming.
"I've just been working hard, and that's it," Mecklenborg responded.
The trooper then asks if Mecklenborg had been drinking, which he repeatedly denies.
On the video, the trooper administers three different field sobriety tests, all of which Mecklenborg fails. The trooper then asks Mecklenborg if he will submit to a Breathalyzer test.
"No, I will not," Mecklenborg replied.
After Mecklenborg refused to submit to a Breathalyzer and a chemical test, the trooper handcuffed him and put him in the police cruiser. Mecklenborg repeatedly asked if the handcuffs could be removed.
A female passenger inside Mecklenborg's car stayed inside the car during the field sobriety tests.
"Who's that?" the trooper asked.
"A girl I met," Mecklenborg replied.
After he was placed in the police cruiser, Mecklenborg asked, "So she can leave immediately right?"
The trooper then asked the woman to step out of the car and began to question her. He asked how she knew Mecklenborg.
"We've been friends for a while," the woman replied.
The woman in the vehicle reportedly works at a strip club in Lawrenceburg.
Mecklenborg is married with three children.
A judge ordered a blood test on Mecklenborg, which showed his blood-alcohol content level at .097, which is above the legal limit for operating a motor vehicle. The toxicology report showed Mecklenborg also tested positive for Viagra.
Mecklenborg was charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated, a misdemeanor. He is scheduled to appear in court on July 26.
Mecklenborg released a statement Thursday, which read, "Being human, I have made a mistake and this has caused great hurt to my family, and I'm deeply sorry for that. I've served tirelessly and well my constituents and I want to apologize to them as well. While the discovery process in this case goes on, I am entitled to the same presumption of innocence as any other citizen. Beyond this, it is a personal matter, which I trust you will respect."
I think it's awesome that a news story is allowed to let the public know what kind of "personal" medications our politicians are using.
Other than that, I'm sure he's not the only drunk driving politician with a "friend" with him. Dumb to be doing it with broken headlight. Oh, and I feel like I could pass a sobriety test as long as I'm under .10
As far as punishment goes, follow the law, and everything should be hunky-dory. His own constituents are ultimately responsible for whether or not they want him in office, but you can bet I'd be looking for a better candidate come November.
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11:11 AM
TommyRocker Member
Posts: 2808 From: Woodstock, IL Registered: Dec 2009
I think it's awesome that a news story is allowed to let the public know what kind of "personal" medications our politicians are using.
Other than that, I'm sure he's not the only drunk driving politician with a "friend" with him. Dumb to be doing it with broken headlight. Oh, and I feel like I could pass a sobriety test as long as I'm under .10
As far as punishment goes, follow the law, and everything should be hunky-dory. His own constituents are ultimately responsible for whether or not they want him in office, but you can bet I'd be looking for a better candidate come November.
It's personal medication IF he has a prescription. One has not been produced. So it is just as illegal as carrying methamphetamine or having your housekeeper procure oxycodone for you under false pretenses. Guess which one this guy will be punished like.
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11:18 AM
partfiero Member
Posts: 6923 From: Tucson, Arizona Registered: Jan 2002
Originally posted by WhiteDevil88: I wonder where fierobear is, and why hasn't he commented on this slimy Republican politician?
Well considering 90% of them are slimy in one form or another, regardless if they have a D or an R tattooed on their forehead, and since it his his job to comment n all of them, he is making his rounds and will be here shortly.
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11:23 AM
Gokart Mozart Member
Posts: 12143 From: Metro Detroit Registered: Mar 2003
It's personal medication IF he has a prescription. One has not been produced. So it is just as illegal as carrying methamphetamine or having your housekeeper procure oxycodone for you under false pretenses. Guess which one this guy will be punished like.
Thanks for the extra info, I don't usually click links here at work to read the whole articles, plus I can't watch any videos either. (Oh, and I don't think Viagara is a Schedule I substance like marijuana and meth are, but I could be wrong, so it would probably be more accurate to charge him like he would be if his housekeeper was providing a fix of oxycodone.
Anyone ever notice that politicians take turns by party getting involved in scandals? How diplomatic! That takes care of our (R) after Weiner, so ...Next up, another (D)!
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11:58 AM
frontal lobe Member
Posts: 9042 From: brookfield,wisconsin Registered: Dec 1999
I've served tirelessly and well my constituents and I want to apologize to them as well.
I wonder where fierobear is, and why hasn't he commented on this slimy Republican politician?
No. That isn't an apology. That is you taking this opportunity to focus on how hard you have worked to serve the constituents, and in saying that, shows that you want that to be excused for your behavior.
Apology rejected. Throw the bum out.
And I am a staunch conservative. Throw the bum out. If your "decision making" is THAT poor, then I don't have confidence in your decision making in the public arena.
Let's endeavor to keep this topic alive for 7 pages, and rouse the American citizenry to force this guy to resign immediately.
I wonder if the hooker/stripper drove his car home for him? LOL...
It won't be necessary. He's a Republican. His political career is over. If he were a Democrat, you could rail against him for years and nothing would happen, and he'd get re-elected.
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07:42 PM
PFF
System Bot
blackrams Member
Posts: 32975 From: Covington, TN, USA Registered: Feb 2003
Let's endeavor to keep this topic alive for 7 pages, and rouse the American citizenry to force this guy to resign immediately.
I wonder if the hooker/stripper drove his car home for him? LOL...
7 pages would take a few people defending him. When a Democrat gets caught doing something bad, you leftists all rally to their defense. When a Republican gets caught in a bad way, very few or no one defends them. Most people in the same party demand they resign as well.
Originally posted by Doug85GT: 7 pages would take a few people defending him. When a Democrat gets caught doing something bad, you leftists all rally to their defense. When a Republican gets caught in a bad way, very few or no one defends them. Most people in the same party demand they resign as well.
I went back and scanned through the Weiner thread. 258 posts, of which zero posts defended his actions. A few of the more rational posters, a very few, questioned the histrionics and violence of the conservative reaction, but none said Weiner was right in what he did nor said he should get away with what he did.
Most of the 258 posts were attacks against Weiner, against democrats, against liberals in general, either through Guilt by Association logic or by direct accusation. Many attacks were against others who dared to question the first attacks.
258 posts over two and a half weeks, many of which were in the first six days. By day two in the other thread there were 33 posts, in this thread it's barely 13. Come on, guys, you gotta pick up the pace if you want to keep up!
I found this post interesting, though:
quote
Originally posted by partfiero:
Not commenting is in no way condoning. Just posted my view of anyone who does this, never had another view. Sometimes I won't post either because I have nothing to add or someone has already expressed my view.
Why is it when a Republican not commenting it's not condoning, but when a Democrat (or liberal, or one of many other names for not-conservatives) doesn't comment it's condoning?
Maybe what partfiero said applies to all, not just one party or the other.
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07:56 PM
htexans1 Member
Posts: 9115 From: Clear Lake City/Houston TX Registered: Sep 2001
Three days without a single comment? C'mon folks, we gotta keep this one rolling if we're ever going to catch up to WeinerGate. Any new news? In the Weiner thread lots of updates got posted every day, need those folks to post updates in this thread as well.
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06:13 PM
madcurl Member
Posts: 21401 From: In a Van down by the Kern River Registered: Jul 2003
Congress is full of "Caligulas." I just wish this one had a funny last name like Weiner's.
This guy is a local state rep... not a federal rep. It's amazing, but this happens at the state level almost on a weekly basis... and the overwhelming vast majority of them don't even make the news...
Watched the whole video. He's a lawyer, he knows what to do. Don't admit to anything, and stall for as much time as you possibly can.
Other thoughts: I wonder how many 26-year-old strippers know the difference between a state congressman and a U.S. congressman? I can almost hear the cleverly-lawyered conversation there.
What gets me about all this is the hypocrisy. None of this stripper business would matter at all if he weren't married. Yet it's virtually impossible to get elected to any kind of public office in this country without being married. Stupid as that is, we find later that many of these guys do what single men do anyway. We make a big deal out of it and the Europeans laugh their asses off at us, because all married men have mistresses over there and it's no big deal to them. Why do we continue to delude ourselves with this marital myth? Is it just the current generation of over-50 politicians and their mindset? Will the next generation finally accept that, single or married, politicians are human?
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11:18 PM
PFF
System Bot
Jul 15th, 2011
82-T/A [At Work] Member
Posts: 25220 From: Florida USA Registered: Aug 2002
Watched the whole video. He's a lawyer, he knows what to do. Don't admit to anything, and stall for as much time as you possibly can.
Other thoughts: I wonder how many 26-year-old strippers know the difference between a state congressman and a U.S. congressman? I can almost hear the cleverly-lawyered conversation there.
What gets me about all this is the hypocrisy. None of this stripper business would matter at all if he weren't married. Yet it's virtually impossible to get elected to any kind of public office in this country without being married. Stupid as that is, we find later that many of these guys do what single men do anyway. We make a big deal out of it and the Europeans laugh their asses off at us, because all married men have mistresses over there and it's no big deal to them. Why do we continue to delude ourselves with this marital myth? Is it just the current generation of over-50 politicians and their mindset? Will the next generation finally accept that, single or married, politicians are human?
No offense to our European friends, but what exactly do they have to laugh about? With the push of a button, we could have all of eastern and western Europe turned into a barren wasteland in under 20 minutes. I really don't care WHAT they think is funny. As long as they keep the chocolate, cheese, ricestaffle, and bitterballer, and Perrier water coming, the laughers can go **** off for all I care.
And I think the fact that they're married has more to do with the fact that most of them are older, and statistics than it has anything to do with some kind of conspiracy to not elect unmarried people. I know a few politicians on the lower level (comissioners, etc) who are not married. I think as people get older, they eventually find someone they want to marry, and well... they get married. There's no conspiracy as far as I can tell.
Do I need to qualify or preface my comment by saying I am a libertarian/objectivist and sympathetic to conservatives over liberals? Fine.
Party affiliation has nothing to do with personal ethics.This guy used bad judgment, lied to his wife and his constituents by omission, and is unworthy of the office to which he was elected (under obviously false pretenses).
This thread is about as perfect a proof that PFF is a Conservative forum as anything can be. This conservative politician's behavior was at least as egregious as the democrat Wiener's, if not more, but it's a virtual ghost town in here whereas the Wiener thread went on for weeks and hundreds of posts.
I guess the proof's in the pudding: A lousy sorry Conservative is still better than any other politician.
And look at the Wu thread, destined to be a duplicate of the Wiener thread in tone, volume, vociferousness, shrieking, etc.
This thread is about as perfect a proof that PFF is a Conservative forum as anything can be. This conservative politician's behavior was at least as egregious as the democrat Wiener's, if not more, but it's a virtual ghost town in here whereas the Wiener thread went on for weeks and hundreds of posts.
I guess the proof's in the pudding: A lousy sorry Conservative is still better than any other politician.
And look at the Wu thread, destined to be a duplicate of the Wiener thread in tone, volume, vociferousness, shrieking, etc.
And here?
Crickets...
Honestly? I haven't said anything because of you. Your first post talked about keeping it alive for 7 pages. I didn't want to humor you.
Nobody supports this guy. He announced his own resignation. What more do you want? Do you want us to say "Yeah I agree" as a post? Fine. Yes, I agree with what happened. He resigned. Done.
We all knew he'd resign. Why? Republicans who mess up admit it and then get replaced.
The Wu thread is on track to pass this one up tomorrow, maybe even tonight. Not bad for what, two days for that one and how many weeks for this one? And I had to keep this one alive...
I just wish this one had a funny last name like Weiner's.
