Tea Party Florida congressman to be arraigned on drug charge

U.S. Representative Trey Radel, a Tea Party Republican from Florida, is due to be arraigned in a Washington, D.C. court on Wednesday on a misdemeanor charge of drug possession, according to court documents. The Tampa Bay Times reported on its website on Tuesday that the drug possession charge involved cocaine. According to the Times, “A court document said on October 29 Radel ‘did unlawfully, knowingly, and intentionally possess a quantity of cocaine, a controlled substance.'” In a statement Radel 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. Had he been arrested in Florida, where cocaine possession is a felony, Radel could be facing even more serious legal problems, including loss of his voting rights and the right to carry a firearm.