Republicans love to campaign on “law and order.” These are the Republicans in Congress with drunk- or impaired-driving records.
Two sitting members of Congress, a president, a vice president, a governor, three more congressmen and a state House Republican leader, every one of them convicted. Each entry links to court or news records. Know of one we missed? Send us the source.
Sentence: $250 fine, one-year license suspension, 180-day jail sentence suspended, and an alcohol safety program. He is still in the U.S. Senate.
Sources:Official portrait, public domain. Styled for this page.
Charged with drunk driving (DWI) and pleaded down to driving while ability impaired (DWAI), a lesser traffic infraction under New York law. He revealed it in a TV interview while running for reelection, calling it “one of the worst decisions” of his life.
Sources:Official portrait, public domain. Styled for this page.
Paid a $150 fine, and his Maine driving privileges were suspended.
Sources:Official portrait, public domain. Styled for this page.
He later acknowledged both convictions publicly. He went on to serve as White House chief of staff, a congressman, secretary of defense and vice president.
Sources:Official portrait, public domain. Styled for this page.
Sentence: $700 fine, 72 hours of community service, 16 hours of alcohol treatment and a license revocation. He went on to serve in Congress (2001–2007) and as governor of Idaho (2007–2019).
Sources:Official portrait, public domain. Styled for this page.
Sentenced to 5 days in jail, a $300 fine, an alcohol safety program and a one-year license suspension. The arrest also exposed a secret second family, and he dropped his reelection bid. Today he is Staten Island Borough President.
Sources:Official portrait, public domain. Styled for this page.
Fined $350 plus court fees, and lost his right to drive in South Dakota for 30 days. He went on to chair the powerful House Ways and Means Committee before retiring in 2023.
Sources:Official portrait, public domain. Styled for this page.
Pleaded guilty to misdemeanor DWI for an April 2009 arrest in Clifton Park, N.Y., and got 30 days in jail and three years of probation. He served in Congress from 1999 to 2007.
Sources:Official portrait, public domain. Styled for this page.
Pleaded guilty to driving while ability impaired and to having a gun while intoxicated, and was sentenced to probation and 120 hours of community service. He stepped down as House Minority Leader after the arrest became public.
Sources:Photo: Colorado Senate Republicans, public domain. Styled for this page.