Report: Radel intends to stay in office

Rep. Trey Radel (R-Fla.) suggested to a Republican Party leader in his home state on Tuesday he will serve out his two-year term in Congress despite being charged with cocaine possession.

“He said that he was going to take care of the issues and that he was looking forward to returning to Congress [after the December holiday recess,]” Terry Miller, chairman of the GOP in Lee County, Fla., told The News-Press, a Gannett newspaper in Fort Myers, Fla.

{mosads}Radel reached out to Miller on Tuesday, the report said. Radel was charged that day with a misdemeanor, to which he plead guilty in court on Wednesday. The freshman congressman was caught purchasing cocaine in a sting operation in late October at Dupont Circle restaurant Circa. Radel was sentenced to a year of probation. 

At the arraignment, he did not mention a possible resignation, and said he hoped to be “a better man, a better husband, and continue serving my country.” 

In a statement Tuesday, Radel blamed the incident on his addiction to alcohol. 

The News-Press reports Radel spent Tuesday night calling close friends and Republicans in Southwest Florida—the region he represents in Congress. Radel was first elected to the House last November.

He spoke to state Rep. Matt Caldwell (R), whom Radel campaigned for in this month’s election.  

“I don’t want to get into what we talked about,” Caldwell told the paper. “He expressed his regrets and said that he was addressing his issues.”

Florida’s Democratic Party is calling for Radel to resign.