dead at 88, 1st elected in 1973(Nixon years), Alaska GOP Rep Don Young was longest serving member of Congress ever,once held knife to Boehner's throat

basquebromance

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Nov 26, 2015
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Don Young ran for Congress in 1972 against Nick Begich. Weeks before the election, Begich's plane disappeared and was never found. Nevertheless, he won. So a new election was held, which Young won. He remained in Congress for 49 years ... until today, when he died aboard a plane.

Alaska Senator Ted Stevens, and Alaska Reps. Don Young and Nick Begich all died on planes. House Majority Leader Hale Boggs was from Louisiana but died alongside Begich while flying over Alaska


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"I used to own -- my father had a ranch. We used to hire 50 to 60 w*tbacks to pick tomatoes. You know it takes two people to pick the same tomatoes now. It's all done by machine." - Don Young

 
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Him and Representative Jim Sensenburner were the last two representatives left who were in office before 1981 marking the era of the Carter administration
 
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Young:

* Wanted ANWR drilled/destroyed
* Wanted 1/4th billion for "bridge to nowhere"
* Called climate change a scam
* Called COVID-19 blown our of proportion (got COVID from not wearing mask)
 
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I heard a story once that when Don Young was ready to go he’d put bacon in his boots and walk out into the woods and fight a bear. This is the only cause of death I will accept. All others are simply unAmerican. Like the environmentalists he called his enemies.
 
Don Young was a fascinating and idiosyncratic guy. Obviously he had many flaws, but he was never afraid to take a stand on what he believed even if it went against the Republican mainstream. The definition of a maverick
 
Favorite Don Young factoid. He authored the 2005 Highway/Transportation bill and named it SAFETEA-LU: Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users

SAFETEA is self explanatory…the LU was an homage to his then wife Lula
 
In 2019, Reps Don Young & Tulsi Gabbard intro'd two bipartisan cannabis bills:
The Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act – remove marijuana from the Controlled Substances list
Marijuana Data Collection Act to study the effects of state legalized cannabis

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