The man who made his way to Fort Yukon in the state’s first year of statehood. The man who won his first House seat in 1973. The man who brandished a walrus penis on the House floor, who threatened to bite a political opponent “like a mink,” who stuffed a transportation bill “like a turkey,” who called Hispanics “wetbacks,” and who is the congressman for all Alaskans except for Sheila Toomey, is now the House’s longest serving Republican.
Florida Rep. Bill Young, who was elected in 1970, had that distinction. He died on Friday while being hospitalized for a back injury. He was 82 years old.
Alaska’s Don Young is 80 years old. He is running again for the 22nd time. He’ll likely win by a large margin, as he’s done so many times in the past.
Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com
Shakespeare wrote “the evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft entered with their bones.” An Alaska modification might be: “The gaffs our Congressman make live forever thanks to the media; his accomplishments for Alaskans, unfortunately, too often remain hidden.”
Congratulations to the longest serving Republican in the House and to the many Alaskans who made it so.