By Peyton Majors
Christian Action League
May 24, 2024
The head of a major North Carolina pro-family group says he is disturbed by a report that state officials were drunk at a bourbon-tasting event in Kentucky and that their actions suggest they “have no understanding or concern about the problematic nature of alcohol.”
The online report was cited by the News and Observer, WRAL and others and said North Carolina politicians were among those who behaved poorly at the event. The Reddit poster said he worked at a bourbon distillery in Kentucky and had the “unfortunate experience of hosting a group of 33 state legislators and government officials from North Carolina.”
“What should have been an opportunity to showcase our hospitality and craftsmanship turned into a display of appalling behavior that left us shocked and disappointed,” the post said. “The visit began with the group arriving an hour late, already inebriated from drinking bourbon on the bus, a clear violation of Kentucky’s open container laws. Their arrival was marked by loud, unruly conduct that disrupted other guests and tarnished the atmosphere we work hard to maintain.”
What was “perhaps most disturbing,” the post said, “was their lack of accountability for their actions.”
“Despite being extremely rude, disruptive, not tipping the bartenders and tour guides, and even VOMITING in our bathroom sinks, not a single apology was offered … despite our efforts to provide them with a pleasant experience by preparing cocktails and offering tastings,” the post said.
“This incident raises questions that the people of North Carolina should be asking. Did their tax dollars fund this trip? If so, is this the representation they expect from their elected officials? Shouldn’t leaders and lawmakers be held to a higher standard of professionalism and respect, especially when representing their constituents in another state?”
Thus far, no legislator has publicly acknowledged he or she was on the trip, although North Carolina House Minority Leader Robert Reives, a Democrat, said only Republicans were invited. GOP legislators quizzed by the News and Observer either said they did not attend or declined to comment.
It isn’t the only possible incident of imbibing by legislators. Last week in D.C., Rep. Jamie Raskin (Md.), the top Democrat on the U.S. House Oversight and Accountability Committee, said it was “worth investigating” whether alcohol played a role in an explosive and now-viral incident between female legislators on the committee. Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) said she saw representatives drinking in the committee room who don’t serve on the committee.
Rev. Mark Creech, executive director of the Christian Action League, said that too often, legislators who claim to support pro-family policies end up promoting the “interests of Big Alcohol.”
“The Christian Action League, perhaps the main public policy organization in North Carolina where alcohol policies and initiatives are a signature issue, finds these reports disturbing but not surprising,” Creech said. “It is not conjecture on my part to say with some authority that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are quite liberal, and in some cases even flippant, about the use of alcoholic beverages. During my tenure as a lobbyist, some of them have been charged with drunk driving.
“But you don’t have to see legislators passing around a liquor bottle or sloppy drunk to come to this conclusion, all you need to do is see how they vote on initiatives to cooperate with Big AL and his efforts to expand his reach. They vote as though they have no understanding or concern about the problematic nature of alcohol.”
The Bible, Creech said, addresses the issue of alcohol and the “importance of wisdom, self-control and the avoidance of drunkenness for those in positions of leadership.”
Creech cited the following verses:
— “It is not for kings, Lemuel — it is not for kings to drink wine, not for rulers to crave beer, lest they drink and forget what has been decreed, and deprive all the oppressed of their rights” (Proverbs 31:4-5).
— “Blessed is the land whose king is of noble birth and whose princes eat at a proper time — for strength and not for drunkenness” (Ecclesiastes 10:17).
— “And these also stagger from wine and reel from beer: Priests and prophets stagger from beer and are befuddled with wine; they reel from beer, they stagger when seeing visions, they stumble when rendering decisions” (Isaiah 28:7).
“These passages tell us what God thinks about leaders and their use of alcoholic beverages,” Creech said. “It is a dangerous situation when state or religious leaders are careless about its use and abuse. If someone at the wheel of a vehicle is inebriated, that person faces being tested for drunk driving. If he or she is found to meet the legal definition of drunkenness, they are liable for a severe penalty. Drunk driving puts people in danger of losing life and limb.
“Well, what about the people who are at the wheel of our state and nation? Are we not endangered by them when they are doing the people’s business without a sober mind? Shouldn’t they set the proper example for each of us?”
