Pubdate: Sat, 06 May 2006
Source: Washington Post (DC)
Section: Page A08
Copyright: 2006 The Washington Post Company
Contact:  http://www.washingtonpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/491
Author: Shailagh Murray and Juliet Eilperin, Washington Post Staff Writers

AN HEIR TO A LEGACY OF POLITICS -- AND ALSO MISFORTUNE

For Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy (D-R.I.), the early-morning crash of his 
Mustang convertible near the Capitol while in what he described as a 
prescription-drug-induced daze was the latest in a series of 
troubling incidents dating to his youth.

Kennedy, boyish-looking at 38 with his mop of red hair, has battled 
drug dependency and other health problems throughout his life. He 
suffers from chronic asthma, and while in his twenties he endured a 
12-hour surgery to remove a tumor from his spinal column, requiring 
months of recovery time.

But the most persistent malady has been manic depression, which 
fostered addiction problems that trace to cocaine abuse during his 
teenage years. Over the last Christmas break, Kennedy spent three 
weeks at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., the same treatment 
center he returned to yesterday.

"He is an addictive personality," said one family friend, who spoke 
on the condition of anonymity. Kennedy quit drinking during his 
winter stay at the clinic, according to the friend.

Kennedy, the son of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), grew up in 
McLean and had a somewhat troubled youth, including time spent in 
drug rehabilitation in 1986, the year before he enrolled at 
Providence College. Blessed with a famous family name, the young 
Kennedy entered Rhode Island politics when he was 21 and won election 
to the U.S. House in 1994.

Although he seemed on course to a promising political career in the 
footsteps of his liberal Democratic father and his uncles, President 
John F. Kennedy and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy (D-N.Y.), the young 
Kennedy was dogged by addictions, depression and self-doubts. His 
family has wealth to match its renown. Kennedy once assured a 
Democratic audience that he did not need Republican tax cuts because 
"I have never worked a . . . day in my life."

Kennedy had a particularly bad year in 2000. In March, the same month 
he admitted he was being treated for depression, he had a run-in with 
a security guard at Los Angeles International Airport who informed 
Kennedy he would have to check a large carry-on bag. The security 
guard filed a battery suit, and Kennedy paid an undisclosed sum to 
settle the case.

That July, a girlfriend who was aboard a yacht with Kennedy called 
the Coast Guard asking to be picked up, after a heated argument 
between the couple. And in November, Kennedy was accused by a charter 
company of inflicting $28,000 in damage on a boat he had rented.

In Rhode Island, rumors flew this spring that something was amiss 
with Kennedy, who had been keeping a particularly low profile in 
recent months. He did attract attention three weeks ago, when he was 
attending an economic development meeting in Pawtucket. Wisconsin 
entrepreneur Matt Kriesel was demonstrating the shock absorption of a 
brand of gel when the hammer he was using flew apart and the head hit 
Kennedy in the mouth. Concerned about his addiction, Kennedy refused 
to take any pain medication when he received six stitches to his 
lower lip, according to a friend.

Around 2:45 a.m. Thursday, Kennedy crashed his car into a security 
barrier near the Capitol, and officers at the scene suspected he may 
have been intoxicated, according to a police union official. The 
congressman's office later said Kennedy was disoriented behind the 
wheel because he was taking prescription medications to calm stomach 
inflammation and to help him sleep. No one was injured, but Kennedy 
almost hit a Capitol Police car head-on before striking the security 
barrier, authorities said.

Rep. James P. Moran Jr. (D-Va.), who spoke with Kennedy about the 
crash, said his friend is "concerned no one is going to give him the 
benefit of the doubt."

"He's had his struggle with a life he didn't ask for but he has to 
accept," Moran said. "I think he wants more than anything to earn his 
father's respect and prove to his constituents in Rhode Island he's 
much more than someone who's getting by on the Kennedy name."

Sen. Kennedy issued a statement calling his son "a courageous man who 
has admitted a problem and taken bold action to correct it."

Recently, Rep. Kennedy has become a more active legislator, using his 
seat on the Appropriations Committee to funnel dollars back home. He 
is popular in his Rhode Island district, particularly with older 
voters, and political observers said they doubt that his House seat 
is in jeopardy, although potential opponents have until the end of 
June to jump into the race.

"I don't see negative ramifications," said Darrell West, a Brown 
University professor of political science who wrote a book on 
Kennedy. "People appreciate that he's worked very hard for the state."

Kennedy came to prominence in 1999 and 2000 as chairman of the 
Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. The handpicked choice of 
then-House Minority Leader Richard A. Gephardt (Mo.), Kennedy worked 
tirelessly to raise money for his party and recruit candidates for 
Congress. Democrats did not win control of the House, but Kennedy won 
praise for mounting a serious campaign to raise funds and mobilize 
party activists.

"He was in every way a great chairman," recalled Erik Smith, who 
served as the DCCC spokesman during Kennedy's tenure.

But the effort left Kennedy exhausted, according to several who know 
him, and less enthusiastic about the idea of seeking a House 
leadership post or a Senate seat. He decided to take a low-key 
approach to legislating, focusing on Rhode Island and mental health issues.

Staff writer David Fahrenthold in Rhode Island and researcher Madonna 
Lebling in Washington contributed to this report.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman