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Tuesday, June 12, 2012
What Really Happened
Shortly after 5pm on Saturday June 9th in California, a car being driven by Commerce Secretary John Bryson rear ended another car that was stopped at a railroad crossing waiting for a train to pass. He got out of the car, spoke to the passengers in the car he hit, presumably exchanged insurance information and then got back in his car. He hit the car again as he drove away. And five minutes later crashed into a different car. When police found him he was slumped over the steering wheel. He was taken to the hospital where I suppose it was determined that Bryson was not under the influence of drugs of alcohol. So what happened? Here’s the terse statement from the Commerce Department:
Secretary Bryson was involved in a traffic accident in Los Angeles over the weekend. He suffered a seizure. He was taken to the hospital for examination and remained overnight for observation. He was released and has returned to Washington. The investigation is ongoing.
It sounds to me like that statement was trying to convince people he had a seizure which caused the first accident, without actually coming out and saying it. I just don’t believe it’s possible that he could have blacked out and had a seizure causing the first accident. And then seemed normal enough that the people he hit let him get back in the car.
I think it’s more likely that Bryson was on the phone or texting while driving and crashed into the back of the first car. After that, he was so disoriented, or perhaps nervous, that caused the other two accidents. If he had a seizure (I would hate to think they would make that up), I think it would have come after the second accident (though it will almost be impossible to ever know for sure). But now Bryson has taken a leave of absence for the Commerce Department while doctors monitor his health for more unexpected seizures (he had never had one before).
It's an interesting theory and you might very well be right about the texting or being distracted as causing the first accident. Like you said, we'll probably never know, but I tend to agree that there's no way the administration would blatantly lie about a seizure.
ReplyDeleteI'm kind of thinking maybe he had a series of small seizures that would cause slight confusion and disorientation and which ended with a bigger one. Remember not every seizure is the kind where you're lying on the floor foaming at the mouth like in the movies, so after he hit the first car and spoke to the passengers, he may not have appeared to be in a state that would cause them any concern.
Obviously he got to that point soon thereafter as he was passed out in his car after hitting a second car, but my impression is he may have started with small seizures, bumped the first car twice while generally in decent health, and then had a more serious seizure right thereafter.
But I was wrong about Anthony Wiener so we'll see how this plays out. Seems unlikely that this will develop into the same type of scandal.