Politics

Evidently, it was not the sushi
Russell Roberts

"Whenever people decry the dirty nature of politics in America today, I always think of the dirt thrown at Thomas Jefferson when he ran for office or the first volume of Robert Caro's chilling and must-read biography of Lyndon Johnson. Now comes news from Ukraine that suggests the rough and tumble of US political bickering is nothing more than a couple of toddlers struggling over a lego they both want:

MEDICAL experts have confirmed that Viktor Yushchenko, Ukraine’s opposition leader, was poisoned in an attempt on his life during election campaigning, the doctor who supervised his treatment at an Austrian clinic said yesterday.

Doctors at Vienna’s exclusive Rudolfinerhaus clinic are within days of identifying the substance that left Mr Yushchenko’s face disfigured with cysts and lesions, Nikolai Korpan told The Times in a telephone interview.

Asked if the aim had been to kill him, Dr Korpan said: “Yes, of course.”


Proof that Mr Yushchenko was deliberately poisoned would be a devastating blow for his rival, the Prime Minister, Viktor Yanukovych, as the two candidates prepare for a repeat of a presidential run-off on December 26.

Mr Yanukovych’s supporters ridiculed the opposition, saying the illness was probably caused by bad sushi, too much cognac or a severe case of herpes. A parliamentary investigation found no evidence of poisoning."