More over blow

I don't know much about Quebecois politics. From what I remember, there's been an ongoing fight between them and other Canadians over French speaking peoples' sovereignty for many years. However I'm interested in this race because the leading PQ candidate's drug use became an issue.

There's a media frenzy going on about André Boisclair's cocaine use in the late 90s. He was 30 something at the time but already a minister in the government, having moved up from the national assembly. They his leadership skills into question. It seems to me, the time to have done that would have been when he was serving as minister. The coke proably made him a more focused legislator if he didn't abuse it and abuse would have been apparent then.

In any event the revelations don't appear to have hurt his support for party leadership. According to Susan Riley at The Ottawa Citizen,

Fortunately for him, the Quebec public has, apparently, "moved on." His approval ratings increased 11 per cent in the wake of the cocaine revelation. He is supported by 71 per cent of Quebecers, and 86 per cent of PQ members, far ahead of his closest rival, Pauline Marois (whose cocaine status isn't an issue). Whether he will stay on top after his prickly performance in the first of six leadership debates on Wednesday remains to be seen.

Apparently Boisclair has become a bit defensive in answering the press. Unless he has something else to hide about those years, he should chill out and stop explaining.