Republican Sponsor Of Welfare Drug Testing Bill Arrested For DUI

Rep. Kip Smith caught swerving in Atlanta

There's the kettle calling the pot black and then there's this.

Georgia state representative John Andrew "Kip" Smith was caught running red lights in Atlanta this past weekend and was eventually arrested on DUI charges.

Smith was leaving Hal's in the Buckhead district when an officer pulled him over. The first time the officer asked him if he'd been drinking, Smith told him he had a beer 45 minutes ago. Then when he asked him again, the told him he had a beer 15 minutes ago.

At that point the officer asked that he blow into the "intoximeter." Figuring that he knew the law, he is a state representative after all, Smith declined the test, saying that he'd rather be taken to a hospital or clinic. The officer reminded the drunken man that that only happens after an arrest and that he wasn't arrested, yet.

After a few more minutes of back and forth, Smith finally blew into the machine and he was well over the legal limit. When the cop arrested him and took him to jail, Smith was given another breathalizer test and he registered even drunker.

The irony in this arrest is that his responsible citizen was a sponsor on Georgia House Bill 464, which would require that all welfare recipients participate in random drug testing if they want to receive benefits. In response to that bill, State Rep. Scott Holcomb introduced a bill that demanded all state lawmakers be subjected to random drug testing as well.