Florida Tea Party congressman to be in court on drug charge

U.S. Representative Trey Radel, a Tea Party Republican from Florida, is due to be arraigned Wednesday in a Washington, D.C., court on a misdemeanor charge of drug possession, according to court documents. The drug possession charge involved cocaine in an October 29 incident, according to several media reports citing a second D.C. Superior Court document. In a statement, Radel, 37, apologized to his family and constituents in southwest Florida, saying that he struggled “with the disease of alcoholism, and this led to an extremely irresponsible choice.” Radel, a freshman member of Congress who calls himself a “Hip Hop Conservative, Lover of #liberty” on his Twitter page, faces a possible six months in jail. Before running for Congress, Radel hosted a conservative TV and radio talk show in Florida.