Power and strength (an earlier campaign slogan for Yanukovych)

It was reported a couple of days ago that the transportation minister was sent to the hospital after a meeting with Yanukovych. Apparently he sustained some sort of injuries from that visit. I thought it was a beating but Discoshaman says that the word on the street was that he had kicked the transportation minister in the groin.

This was an interesting story and more what I thought might be gossip or of the “look at what the very bad man did Johnny” variety. But my wife suggested a reason for why Yanukovych might have been upset which makes it more interesting and bad. She said that he was probably called into the PM’s office and a demand was made of him to explain why all these protestors were allowed to get to Kiev. The trip to the hospital shows that his answer was not satisfactory.

And in one of the comments posted here, a doctor says that Yanukovych punched out his wife.

A doctor from the Feofaniya clinic for government officials in Kiev says Yanukovich beat two teeth out of his wife's mouth. She was brought in to see a dentist in the clinic a few days ago. Mrs. Yanukovich must have been opening her mouth too much.

This is the guy who was set to be president. And this is one of the reasons why some supporters might not have been overjoyed to see Yuschenko shake his hand.

UPDATE: Orange Ukraine says the minister was kicked because he would no longer support Yanukovych.