Watch Nick Ayers, Tim Pawlenty's presidential campaign manager, get arrested for DWI [VIDEO]

GUEST

I SUSPECT PAWLENTY ALSO OF DRIVING DRUNK (DWI). GET HIM OFF THE ROAD!!!

BossHoss

Georgia Peckerwood!

RoscoeP

Where'd we get this Southern Redneck cop? Is this Minnesota or Allybama?

Dougie Fresh

I'm also as liberal as they come. I can assure you there will always be an over-abundance of hypocracy that the "conservatives" will hang themselves with, but that goes for anyone who is human, democrat, birther, or green tree-hugger.

Nick Ayers could never have been convicted based on that video, and good for him. I can't help thinking that those among us who mistrust heavy-handed police behavior won't mind having someone with Ayers' stature being stiffed like this on national stage. I'm sure the irony of being an operative for a party that promotes law and order, greater police power (yahdahyahdah)...isn't lost on him either.

Alex

Wow, this is lame. In the end the guy didn't even get the DUI, it was thrown out. He certainly wasn't even that drunk. I didn't watch the second video, but I don't even think he was smarmy in the first. What are you fishing for here?

jw456

How come Pawlenty's had 4 staff members with drunk driving arrests, 3 with one and another with 3 arrests? Worth noting in my opinion. Here are the facts:http://elections.americablog.c...

Markoff Chaney

What a yawner. If I were editor I'd get some writers with balls, or at least spines. Weird Wisconsin is usually solid though.

Common Sense

city pages has become garbage along the lines of sun

Mewo

Pathetic excuse for journalism.

People make mistakes. The fact is, this man made one. The Truth is that he learned from it and moved on.

Patiently waiting for this headline: One of Pawlenty's intern received a parking ticket in 2003

Salcedo97

Nick Ayers is a smug little suck-up punk...perfect for serving his Republican masters.

Mungo

How much do you all get paid to say "I'm a liberal and all but come on - who cares if this guy drove drunk?"

Pathetic.

Guy

missing the point, my friend.

Roe Pressley

and amend that with, "The only thing separating City Pages from tabloids here is its price."

John Dough

This was a FAILED field sobriety test? Cop needs to get a real job.

Big Herb Dickerson

or dumbass like you need to understand the validity and importance of DWI enforcemnt. either way. just saying.

Roe Pressley

It's already been said, so just mark me down as another vote in the "I'm a liberal and don't like Pawlenty either, but City Pages is disgracing itself by publishing pure yellow-journalism muck-raking here" category.

moscar

Wow! If I were CP and watched this video, I not only wouldn't have written the story, but I would have destroyed the tape so that everyone was not able to really see what a non-story this is. The cop said he failed the balance test for 'not looking at his foot and hands behind his back instead of by his side.' Under those circumstances, it should be expected that he would correct him and/or reinstruct before the test begins. "Bring your hands to your side and look at your foot. Ready? Go." Outside, at night, headlights shining on him, in the parking lot of his work, he stood on one foot for nearly 30 seconds, without wavering. He was polite. He seemed to do quite well on the walk-the-line test. I am very Democrat and do not like Pawlenty, at all, but even if this guy was over the legal limit, there is not story here CP. Move on.

Big Herb Dickerson

an impaired driver is unable to adequately focus on two simultaneous tasks (like see child run into street and depress brake pedal OR put car in reverse instead of drive when leaving a parking spot). the tests are designed to gauge whether the driver is able to do two things at once (like look at foot and count OR walk nine step AND THEN turn with a serious of small steps like the officer told him and showed him). it's not a matter of what YOU think looks good. the tests are based on science, they are based on objective observations that correlate to proven effects of alcohol on the human body at the impaired level. the officer administered the horizontal gaze nystagmus test. this test shows whether the impaired driver has the involuntary muscle reaction that occurs when the Blood Alcohol Limit reaches .10. It's not made up on the spot. The officer doesn't offer you a cheat sheet. You don't get a chance to say "do over" when the son of a bitch runs over your child. The tests are standardized and have been accepted as scientific evidence. it's really not what you think. my grandfather was pinned at the thighs against a retaining wall by a drunk driver leaving a parking spot in the wrong direction. he died of complications of that crush injury 4 years later. drunk driving hurts and kills people. pull your head out of your ass moscar and leave the hey dude shit off the page.

Logic

You have no idea about anything to do with field sobriety tests. Do you know how many total "clues" there are on the One-Leg Stand test? Do you know how many clues it takes to fail? Do you know how many actions DON'T count as clues? Do you know that, "based on the science" he actually passed those tests?

Knee jerk much?

Big Herb Dickerson

I had the highest DWI investigation certification level available a few years back. I made 51 arrests in my short career. 49 convictions, 1 warrant, 1 just because I watched him drive through a stop sign at 30mph narrowly missing a loaded semi going 45 mph, cross traffic doesn't stop, and he was drunk. I arrested him even though he refused every test. Field Sobriety Tests aren't graded on a curve dumb ass. So since you are the expert here, I give, how many clues are there? You tell me.

Bud

Ah, yes, those with DWI's on their records (like US Rep. Tim Walz) should be excluded from society forevermore.

CRZ

If this story had no impact five years ago, why will it matter now (or even a further 18 months later)? I believe we had the Internet back in 2006 as well.

The REAL crime is that this story was spread out over three pages when it could have fit just fine on one. HITZ

Jim Olson

It's not as if Ayers holds a position in government. It's not as if he drowned somebody.

Dickerson, Big Herb to you

yeah jim we all know that no one EVER gets hurt or killed by drunk drivers... dumb ass. oh and campaign manager for presidential candidate is one of the highest political positions i am aware of... dumb ass.

Fuck

Wow. If I had a nickel everything I've thought 'a new journalistic low for citypages' I'd be one happy clam...

bort

Congrats on the mad hitz this is gonna yield. Jesus CP, really?

Guest

Seriously. Another liberal here and no fan of T-Paw but this is ridiculous. He got one DWI 5, 6 years ago and this is shocking news? it'd be one thing if he were a habitual DWI offender but one offense at 24, that presumably hasn't been repeated, does not a serial criminal make.

Zeroisanumber

Seriously, who gives a flying shit if T-Paw's campaign manager got a DWI five years ago?

Guy

This is like a parody of an amateur mud-slinging attempt. This has to be a joke, right? Just look at that caption under his photo: "Nick Ayers as he would like you to see him" --are you serious? Did you think he would use his mug shot as his official PR photo? If this isn't a joke, it's a new low. Time for a new editor.

Cheeeeeeeezmaster

What America really wants to know: Did Nick Ayers draw penises on any passed out girls when he was in jail, and did he take pictures of those drawings and post them on facebook? City Pages, I know I can count on you to answer these questions.

Sjmeade66

Come on City Pages. I am not a fan of Pawlenty's and I am a fan of City Pages. I am socially liberal. But seriously? 5-6 yrs ago this guy gets a dwi? First of all, who gives a sh%t, second of all he looked fine to me. How about a story concerning all the people who have their lives turned upside down because they were driving home after 3 miller lites? Pawlenty is a goof ball, but this is below your standards in my opinion.

Living in New Hampshire, and miss you guys.

Stephen

Sean Broom

Really? This is what was supposed to make Pawlenty's campaign implode? I know that breathless hyping of your overwrought writing is part and parcel of what you guys do, but the question still stands, were you drunk when you tweeted that?

Really?

Seriously? A video of a 5 year old event that didn't involve Pawlenty at all is the big news that is going to shock his campaign? What are you guys drinking? Has Ayers been pulled over repeatedly, or was this one time and he learned a lesson? And of course, he probably is the only politically connected person, Republican or Democrat, who has ever been pulled over for a DUI. If you showed a pattern, even something very recent, or certainly if it involved Pawlenty in the car with Ayers or something - well, there might be something to the story. As it is, this is just lame story trying to sling mud.

El Lobo

He passed, in my book. Put me on the jury. We've most of us driven far more dwi than Ayers in that video. Much ado about nothing. Has he been arrested since--then we've got a problem. I suspect he's learned his lesson and this is just a smear for political purposes.

Key Lobo

Mr. Ayers was impressed with his own answers to the Troopers questions and his sobreity performance. He accepted the handcuffs as proof that his performance was convincing.

A Day in the Life of a Presidential Campaign Manager has merit for the public who want insight about a candidates associates. When a candidate tells lies, the trail to the source of lies has merit.

Guest

Holy crap, just because others do it, that means it's ok? Time to start mowing down some strangers because killing people is fine since other people have done it.