There, of course, except for the grace of God, go we.

But the arrest last week of Wisconsin State Representative Josh Zepnick for drunk driving is notable for several reasons; (1) the mugshot, (2) the hypocrisy and the sanctimony.

Let’s start with the hypocrisy. Zepnick has, for years, cast himself in the role of a zealous proponent of tougher drunk driving legislation, often citing the tragic story of his own sister’s death at the hands of a drunk. He had become notorious for his sanctimonious willingness to pose for holy pictures on the issue.

Zepnick was one of the primary sponsors of a 2009 law signed by then-Gov. Jim Doyle that stiffened drunken driving laws.

That law makes fourth offenses a felony if they occur within five years of a previous offense; requires ignition interlocks for all repeat drunken drivers and first-time offenders with a blood-alcohol level of 0.15 or greater; and makes first-offense drunken driving a misdemeanor if a child younger than 16 is in the vehicle.

Zepnick has also introduced bills to ban all-you-can-drink specials and require bartenders to maintain absolute sobriety, but those measures never went anywhere. He said in 2009 he put forward legislation to curb drunken driving because “we really aren’t making progress in Wisconsin.”

It’s not just that Zepnick’s own behavior was inconsistent with the rhetoric… it’s that it was spectacularly inconsistent. His respect for the law was evidenced by his refusal to take a breath test at the scene after failing a field sobriety test.

Then there’s the mugshot. We don’t begrudge anyone a happy drunk. But after you’ve just been busted and booked for DUI? Really?

We can’t help but remember Zepnick’s bizarre bullying of a local businessman for daring to oppose the downtown streetcar plan.

In a post on Facebook, the state representative wrote:

“Sobelman really piss me off on this one. Talk about no civic pride for a place that profits off of my city…good food, but you go there: its crowded, staff is snotty/cranky all the frickin time, parking sucks, and its not safe at night. Hope City reconsiders his sidewalk seating permit for this summer!!! Bwa ha ha…”

This led to an on-air call to Charlie Sykes’s show from from Zepnick who declined to apologize to Sobelman for his comments trashing his business and appearing to call for regulatory retaliation against the restaurant. He did however, admit that his actions were him “being juvenile.”

In short: it didn’t go well for Zepnick. You can listen to the full radio exchange between Sykes and Zepnick above.

His behavior in that incident was so bizarre that Sykes asked him (around 4:30 here) on air whether he had been drinking when he posted the threat. He denied it.