https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/mar/17/republicans-resurface-beto-o-rou...Republicans resurface Beto O’Rourke DUI mugshot in St Patrick's Day attack
GOP tweeted presidential candidate’s mugshot emblazoned with a green leprechaun’s hat and the words ‘please drink responsibly’
In an attempt to celebrate St Patrick’s Day and attack a political rival, the Republican party tweeted a mugshot of the Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke emblazoned with a green leprechaun’s hat and the words “please drink responsibly”.
O’Rourke, 46, is a former US representative from Texas who narrowly lost a US Senate race against the Republican Ted Cruz last year. He announced his White House run this week.
The mugshot is more than 20 years old. In September 1998, O’Rourke was booked for driving while drunk, at what a witness called “a high rate of speed”, on a Texas interstate. He lost control of his car and hit a truck.
According to a witness, O’Rourke attempted to leave the scene. After he completed a court-approved diversion program, charges were dismissed.
He was also arrested by University of Texas El Paso police in 1995, for jumping a fence. Misdemeanor burglary charges were dropped. The arrests have been used to attack O’Rourke before, by opponents in both parties.