My Congressman's wife got kicked out of the State of the Union Address

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - My Congressman's wife got kicked out of the State of the Union Address

Posted: 2/1/2006 3:33:35 AM EDT

for wearing a T-shirt that said, "Support the Troops - Defending Our Freedom".

From: www.sptimes.com/2006/02/01/Worldandnation/T_shirt_earns_exit_fr.shtml

T-shirt earns exit from House gallery

Beverly Young, the outspoken wife of U.S. Rep. C.W. Bill Young, says officers objected to her "Support the Troops" shirt.

By BILL ADAIR, Times Washington Bureau Chief
Published February 1, 2006

WASHINGTON - Beverly Young, wife of Rep. C.W. Bill Young of Indian Shores, said she was ejected from the House gallery during Tuesday night's State of the Union address because she was wearing a T-shirt that said "Support the Troops - Defending Our Freedom."

Young said she was sitting in the gallery's front row, about six seats from first lady Laura Bush, when she was approached by someone from the Capitol Police or sergeant-at-arms office who told her she needed to leave the gallery.

She reluctantly agreed but argued with several officers in the hallway outside the House chamber.

"They said I was protesting," she said in a telephone interview late Tuesday. "I said, "Read my shirt, it is not a protest.' They said, "We consider that a protest.' I said, "Then you are an idiot."'

She said she was so angry that "I got real colorful with them."

They told her she was being treated the same as Cindy Sheehan, an antiwar protester who was ejected before the speech Tuesday night for wearing a T-shirt with an antiwar slogan and refusing to cover it up.

Young, 50, said her shirt was not a protest but a message of support for U.S. soldiers and Marines fighting for their country. She often wears the T-shirts when visiting her husband at the Capitol and during her visits to see the wounded at military hospitals.

Sgt. Kimberly Schneider of the Capitol Police could not provide details about the incident but said, "She was not ejected from the gallery. She did leave on her own."

Young's husband, a Republican who chairs the House appropriations subcommittee on defense, was unaware she was removed until after the speech. He said he was furious about the incident.

"I just called for the chief of police and asked him to get his little tail over here," Rep. Young said late Tuesday. "This is not acceptable."

Beverly Young said, "Wait until the president finds out."
[Last modified February 1, 2006, 01:04:14]

Also, great article on her work for wounded vets:

Young kisses Peter Jerrick, 38, of Fort White at the James A. Haley VA Medical Center in Tampa. He lost a leg and is paralyzed from an attack in Iraq.

Capitol Hill wife who just won't sit still

Seen but not heard? Not Beverly Young. For wounded soldiers, she'll make such a fuss laws are changed.

By BILL ADAIR, Times Washington Bureau Chief
Published December 19, 2005

BETHESDA, Md. - This is not how congressional wives are supposed to act.

They are not supposed to curse at Pentagon officials, write angry letters to President Bush or say that members of Congress take bribes.

But Beverly Young, the wife of Rep. C.W. Bill Young of Indian Shores, doesn't play by those rules. Spend a day with her visiting wounded Marines at the National Naval Medical Center and you'll hear a few expletives. When she sees a photograph of a former hospital official, Beverly says: "See this b----? If she were here, I'd deck her."

But mostly what you hear from Beverly is compassion for the Marines who lie in the surgical ward, wincing from their injuries. Many have had arms or legs amputated. She holds their hands and tells each of them, "We love you, Marine."

She asks one if he needs chewing tobacco or whiskey. She slips $200 to the fiancee of another.

She spends several days a week at the hospital, often bringing pizzas or DVDs. When the Marines have no family, Beverly spends hours in their rooms like a surrogate mother. One Marine says that when he was overmedicated with painkillers, she saved his life by cursing in his ear like a drill instructor.

Laws have been changed thanks to Beverly. She prodded her husband to create a nationwide registry for bone marrow donors. When she discovered the military charged wounded soldiers for hospital meals, she raised such a fuss Congress repealed the law.

Says Marine Brig. Gen. John Kelly: "She can be a royal pain in the a-- - but only to people who don't care about the troops."

* * *

On a cold December morning, the Youngs arrive at the Bethesda naval hospital. Three staffers from Bill's congressional office carry boxes of CD players and music CDs for the injured Marines. People injured in battle often can't stop the sounds of war in their heads. Music helps.

As the Youngs stop in each room, Beverly goes bedside and holds a hand or rubs a shoulder. She never lets go.

She and Bill talk with a Marine whose leg was amputated at his knee because of a grenade blast. He is groggy from painkillers.

They are ready to offer him a CD player when his mother says the band Fleetwood Mac has given iPods loaded with rock music to everyone in the ward. But Beverly has noticed a photo of the Marine wearing a cowboy hat. "Do you need any country music?" she asks.

He does. She summons the aide with the CDs. "We need some country."

She flips through the assortment. "Lonestar? Brooks & Dunn? Kenny Chesney?"

"I like Brooks & Dunn," he says. She hands over a CD player, a Brooks & Dunn CD and a couple of others.

They chat about his family and his Western roots. Beverly wonders if a little chewing tobacco would help him recuperate. "Do you need some dip?"

He shakes his head no.

"You need some whiskey?"

"I love whiskey," he says.

They talk about his injuries and his wish to get home for Christmas. She ends the visit by telling him, "We love you, Marine."

* * *

The Youngs' generosity comes in hundreds of gestures, big and small. When wounded soldiers or Marines leave the hospital, Bill and Beverly take them out for a steak dinner. On Christmas, the Youngs deliver turkeys to Marines in Quantico, Va., and then take gifts to the patients in the Army and Navy hospitals. "We just try to make them know they are loved," Beverly says.

The Youngs do not seek publicity for their work. (It took several requests before they would allow the St. Petersburg Times to accompany them for this story.)

But Beverly is not shy about seeking donations. She got her gynecologist to pay for the CD players and music. She got the country band Alabama and many others to donate money to a paralyzed sailor.

She makes her rounds at military and veterans hospitals in Bethesda, Washington and the Tampa Bay area. Bill accompanies her when his schedule permits. They spend hundreds of dollars from their own pockets on pizzas, clothes, movies. Beverly has been known to bring pitchers of margaritas or a bottle of Jack Daniel's.

She insists they call her Beverly. "You call me "ma'am,"' she says, "and I'm going to whup your a--."

* * *

Beverly, 50, grew up in an Italian family in Seminole, the youngest of five. She married a Pinellas sheriff's deputy shortly after high school and they moved to Colorado, where she became a volunteer firefighter and medic.

They divorced and she returned to Pinellas County and went to work as a secretary in Bill's congressional office. Bill divorced his first wife and married Beverly in 1985. They have two sons, Billy, 21, and Patrick, 18, and Robbie, 29, from her first marriage.

Bill is 75, 25 years older, a difference that was difficult at first. "There were people taking bets on whether this marriage would last - and I was one of them," she says. "A couple of times I wanted to run. But we had kids."

Their marriage grew stronger as they put the boys first. She stayed home to take care of them, and Bill skipped nighttime political events so he could be home for dinner.

They have very different personalities. Beverly is fiery and blunt, Bill is gentle and diplomatic. Their marriage is proof that opposites attract. "He once told me that I was everything he was not allowed to be," she says.

Spend a day with them and you get the sense there is a good cop-bad cop strategy at work. He smiles and steps aside while she raises hell. But he supports everything she does.

He says Beverly introduced him to some important health care programs such as bone marrow transplants. He then created a federal bone marrow registry that has saved thousands of lives.

Both of the Youngs are devoted to the military. Beverly always respected men and women in uniform, but she became more passionate five years ago after helping a Marine who was shot in the back during training. Now, when she or Bill meet with the wounded, they always say, "Thank you for your sacrifice."

It is common for Capitol Hill spouses to adopt causes, but what's striking about the wife of Florida's most powerful House member is her style. She is not demure. She once attended a meeting of congressional wives but walked out after 20 minutes. She and Bill avoid the D.C. party circuit.

"She has never been the typical congressional wife," Bill says, with a knowing smile. He says he likes the fact that she is "very honest and open."

Beverly makes wisecracks about going through menopause, but looks five or 10 years younger than she is. She has a stylish haircut and gold hoop earrings, and - even when visiting the Capitol - wears jeans and a Marine Corps T-shirt that says "Nothing But Attitude."

"I could buy a dress for George Bush's Christmas party - or give $200 to (the fiancee of the wounded Marine). I'd rather give it to the girl."

Members of Congress usually live in pricey homes close to the Capitol or in nearby suburbs. But the Youngs live 30 miles away in Woodbridge, Va.

Beverly says it's all they can afford because her husband "doesn't take bribes like all the others."

* * *

Bill, who has clout with the military as chairman of the appropriations defense subcommittee, is a Republican who usually votes with his party. But his record is a little too conservative for Beverly's tastes, especially on abortion and gay rights.

"I think people should be able to be in love with whoever they want," she says. "I don't think men have a right to tell women what to do with their bodies."

Beverly supported the Iraq war but now has qualms. She has seen too many soldiers and Marines blown up by improvised explosive devices, the bombs used by insurgents.

"I'm all for (the troops) coming home because these IEDs are vicious," she says.

She is no fan of politicians, even though her husband is one.

"The world would be a much better place without partisanship," she says. But she is protective of Bill's reputation and says that when he retires, she might run for his seat if she doesn't like the candidates.

"I don't have a lot of political knowledge and I don't know much about the system. But I think I would be better than a lot of these people in state politics. I would do what's right for the people."

She is a Republican so she can vote for Bill in primary elections, but at least once she voted against him. In 1984, she voted for Democrat Robert Kent, a former wig salesman who changed his name from Ivan Korunek because he wanted a stronger name. He had little money and got trounced, but Beverly liked his honesty. She always prefers the underdog.

* * *

A few months ago, Beverly read that the Army was tightening its rules about when wounded soldiers could accept donations.

She was outraged. She feared the crackdown would discourage donors and intimidate soldiers.

She sat down at her computer and fired off a letter to President Bush. It began, "My name is Beverly Young, wife of Chairman Bill Young of Florida. In my 20 years in Washington I honestly believed there was nothing more that could shock me, but I was wrong."

A White House aide wrote back to say that the Pentagon would look into Beverly's complaints.

Her letter violated an unspoken rule for congressional wives, that they are to be seen and not heard. But Beverly didn't care. She was furious that an Army official would try to restrict donations.

"Why the hell did some idiot make that stupid comment and put it in the paper?" she told a reporter. "It has scared the wounded."

The Army insisted the rules were not discouraging anyone and that soldiers were still getting donations swiftly. But Beverly didn't believe it.

"F--- that!" she later said. "Print that: F--- that! These kids ought to be able to get anything they want from a grateful American."

Because of her complaints, Congress is changing the law.

* * *

Marine Lance Cpl. Josh Callihan was shot four times in the back in a training exercise. The bullets hit his spinal cord, leaving him partially paralyzed.

When he heard the Youngs wanted to see him, he expected the usual political visit: a handshake, a few snapshots and they would be gone.

But the Youngs came every day. When his condition deteriorated, Bill and Beverly acted as his family, meeting with doctors, discussing treatments.

Callihan was so heavily medicated, he was a zombie. He stopped eating and simply sat in his bed, staring into space. Bill and Beverly conferred with his doctors, who said his prognosis was not good. They wanted to transfer him to the psychiatric ward.

Beverly broke into tears. She left the meeting and went to Callihan's bedside.

"You know something, Marine?" she whispered in his ear. "You are a damn disgrace. If you were a real Marine, you would just pull out of this. I will get Gen. Jones (the head of the Marine Corps) down here and we will kick your a-- if you don't get better."

It was as if someone flipped a switch inside him. Callihan came to life and started talking to Beverly. He did not have to go to the psych ward.

When Callihan recovered, Rep. Young hired him for his congressional office. When he needed a place to stay, Bill and Beverly let him live at their home.

Callihan, who now works for a congressman in his home state of Idaho, says Beverly's tough love was the spark he needed.

"It got me fired up," he says. "She was instrumental in me surviving. If it hadn't been for her, I would have literally fallen through the cracks."

--Washington bureau chief Bill Adair can be reached at [email protected] or 202 463-0575.
[Last modified December 19, 2005, 01:39:06]

I love this woman.

Posted: 2/1/2006 3:38:17 AM EDT

[#1]

Sounds like she is an awesome lady. But, she of all people should have known that you don't wear a t-shirt to the State of the Union.

Posted: 2/1/2006 3:41:16 AM EDT

[#2]

Quoted:
Sounds like she is an awesome lady. But, she of all people should have known that you don't wear a t-shirt to the State of the Union.

+1

Posted: 2/1/2006 3:49:50 AM EDT

[#3]

What an awesome woman! She is great.

She shouldn't wear the shirt only because it allows someone like the IDIOT Cindy Shehan to bitch.

Posted: 2/1/2006 3:50:24 AM EDT

[#4]

Quoted:
Sounds like she is an awesome lady. But, she of all people should have known that you don't wear a t-shirt to the State of the Union.

It's not supposed to be a partisan thing. T-shirts are inappropriate in a coats & tie. Cindy Sheehand was wearing her protest t-shirt and was arrested to prevent disrupting the speech. So the rules should not be bent for her, even though I'm 110% behind her. To me it would've been a great honor and priviledge to listen to the PotUS speech.

Posted: 2/1/2006 4:00:14 AM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Sounds like she is an awesome lady. But, she of all people should have known that you don't wear a t-shirt to the State of the Union.

It's not supposed to be a partisan thing. T-shirts are inappropriate in a coats & tie. Cindy Sheehand was wearing her protest t-shirt and was arrested to prevent disrupting the speech. So the rules should not be bent for her, even though I'm 110% behind her. To me it would've been a great honor and priviledge to listen to the PotUS speech.

She was not arrested to prevent disrupting the speech, although that's a nice bonus. She was arrested for demonstrating in the Capitol, which is illegal. A demonstration can be either anti-something or pro-something. Sheehan was told her activity was prohibited but refused to leave, resulting in arrest. The Congressman's wife was told the same thing, and voluntarily left the gallery. Voluntary compliance usually eliminates the need for arrest in order for law and order to be enforced. Cindy needs to learn a few things.

Posted: 2/1/2006 4:05:43 AM EDT

[#6]

What a great American.

She see's something wrong, and won't shut up until it is right.

Outstanding.

TXL

Posted: 2/1/2006 4:14:03 AM EDT

[#7]

npd233: Thanks for the clearification. I didn't know that.

Posted: 2/1/2006 4:16:35 AM EDT

[#8]

Someone I would love to meet.

Posted: 2/1/2006 4:25:14 AM EDT

[#9]

wow, what a woman!!! gotta be that hot italian blood...she sure the hell has my vote!

Posted: 2/1/2006 4:33:20 AM EDT

[#10]

Freedom of speech doesn't apply to the peanut gallery.

Posted: 2/1/2006 4:33:35 AM EDT

[#11]

She was supposed to wear it underneith her clothing then jump up and yell and interupt like the dems and the libtards do.

Posted: 2/1/2006 4:45:38 AM EDT

[#12]

Quoted:
What a great American.

She see's something wrong, and won't shut up until it is right.

Outstanding.

same words the DU say about the kook sheehan

Posted: 2/1/2006 4:53:46 AM EDT

[#13]

Sounds like a damned fine woman. God Bless her. We could use a few hundred more like her.

Posted: 2/1/2006 4:58:10 AM EDT

[#14]

Smooth move, lady.

Posted: 2/1/2006 4:59:12 AM EDT

[#15]

Quoted:
Quoted:
What a great American.

She see's something wrong, and won't shut up until it is right.

Outstanding.

same words the DU say about the kook sheehan

same words the germans said about hitler. what's your point???

Posted: 2/1/2006 5:12:59 AM EDT

[#16]

Bad wardrobe choice.
I guess she never got refused admission to a restaurant with a dress code

Posted: 2/1/2006 5:26:42 AM EDT

[#17]

Quoted:
Sounds like a damned fine woman. God Bless her. We could use a few ~~hundred~~Million more like her.

Fixed it for you. Although I support their right to freedom of expression, Sheehan went beyond the T-shirt bit and was boisterous and hung a banner from the balcony. If just the T-shirt, I would have no problem with either of them staying. It is the conduct beyond that where Sheehan was wrong. Therefor, Beverly Young should have been left alone and Sheehan should have been removed. JMHO

Posted: 2/1/2006 5:30:13 AM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Sounds like a damned fine woman. God Bless her. We could use a few ~~hundred~~Million more like her.

Fixed it for you. Although I support their right to freedom of expression, Sheehan went beyond the T-shirt bit and was boisterous and hung a banner from the balcony. If just the T-shirt, I would have no problem with either of them staying. It is the conduct beyond that where Sheehan was wrong. Therefor, Beverly Young should have been left alone and Sheehan should have been removed. JMHO

Right or wrong, that would have gone over like a fart in church with the press....

Posted: 2/1/2006 5:41:03 AM EDT

[#19]

Great Lady.

However, only ONE man gets to send a message in that room, and that's The President of The United States of America.

God Bless her.

Posted: 2/1/2006 6:12:53 AM EDT

[#20]

Too bad she didn't wear a nice american flag and marine corps pin on her suit...

But, in the end, she did get publicity, although I don't think that was part of her plan.

A very inspiring woman. I hope she runs for office when her husband decides to retire.

Nice usage of the Bully Pulpit!

Posted: 2/1/2006 6:14:35 AM EDT

[#21]

seems like a great lady
but you have to be consistant and political T shirt is not approtiate in the capitol for the state of the union

Posted: 2/1/2006 6:20:59 AM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:
Great Lady.

However, only ONE man gets to send a message in that room, and that's The President of The United States of America.

God Bless her.

+1

Posted: 2/1/2006 6:38:04 AM EDT

[#23]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Great Lady.

However, only ONE man gets to send a message in that room, and that's The President of The United States of America.

God Bless her.

+1

+2

Posted: 2/1/2006 6:40:27 AM EDT

[#24]

She sounds like a great woman. I have a lot of respect for her. I'm a little worried about her giving a heavily medicated Marine "whiskey"(that could kill him), but I'm sure it was saved for later.
I think she was a little out of place wearing a shirt that could be inflammatory. Even if I could care less if the people it inflames died in terrible blimp accidents, that isn't the time or place for it. Allowing that shirt and not Cindy (I'm milking my son's death for all it's worth) Sheebitch's shirt would be kind of like gloating, and a bit improper.

Don't get me wrong, I agree with her sentiments, and applaud her actions, but that shirt wasn't appropriate attire considering the venue.

Posted: 2/1/2006 11:56:42 AM EDT

[#25]

Quoted: WASHINGTON - Beverly Young, wife of Rep. C.W. Bill Young of Indian Shores, said she was ejected from the House gallery during Tuesday night's State of the Union address because she was wearing a T-shirt that said "Support the Troops - Defending Our Freedom."

They should've have given her a seat behind President GW Bush for the speech.

Posted: 2/1/2006 12:21:45 PM EDT

[#26]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Sounds like a damned fine woman. God Bless her. We could use a few ~~hundred~~Million more like her.

Fixed it for you. Although I support their right to freedom of expression, Sheehan went beyond the T-shirt bit and was boisterous and hung a banner from the balcony. If just the T-shirt, I would have no problem with either of them staying. It is the conduct beyond that where Sheehan was wrong. Therefor, Beverly Young should have been left alone and Sheehan should have been removed. JMHO

Hell, we only have what, 438 Congress rats? I meant Congressional wives.

But yeah, we need more women with clear vision and unwarped perspectives.

Posted: 2/1/2006 12:30:37 PM EDT

[#27]

Okay, boys.

You're going to have to help me on this one.

How is a tee-shirt that says "Support the Troops - Defending Our Freedom.", out of place in Congress?

Anyone that doesn't like it ought to be taken out, tied to a telephone pole, and horse-whipped.

Posted: 2/1/2006 12:35:13 PM EDT

[#28]

I appreciate her work for the troops, but it you want to get noticed at the state of the Union, THEN GET ELECTED PRESIDENT and you'll have your chance.

Posted: 2/1/2006 12:36:01 PM EDT

[#29]

Quoted:
Okay, boys.

You're going to have to help me on this one.

How is a tee-shirt that says "Support the Troops - Defending Our Freedom.", out of place in Congress?

Anyone that doesn't like it ought to be taken out, tied to a telephone pole, and horse-whipped.

It is the State of the Union - kind of a dressed down black tie dinner. It is only respectful to wear suits for everyone including the photographers, tv people, ect.

Posted: 2/1/2006 12:40:24 PM EDT

[#30]

Quoted:
Okay, boys.

You're going to have to help me on this one.

How is a tee-shirt that says "Support the Troops - Defending Our Freedom.", out of place in Congress?

Anyone that doesn't like it ought to be taken out, tied to a telephone pole, and horse-whipped.

OP -

I firmly believe that she is right on the message, however this is not about the message, but rather about the time, place and manner of the message. As I said in the Cindy thread anyone who wears a t-shirt to the State of the Union is NOT demonstrating class and respect to the event or the office. For that alone you should be removed, but in the case of the Congresscritter's wife, she does not need to be drug out by her hair. Instead, it sounds like Congressman Young could use a kick in the head for publicly berating the chief of the capitol hill police.

That being said, who is going to wear a "Vote from the Rooftops" shirt next year?

SBG

Posted: 2/1/2006 12:53:42 PM EDT

[#31]

how much you wanna bet she did that as a counter to what sheehan was gonna do just so they could go "look, see, the law was applied equally and fairly" ?

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - My Congressman's wife got kicked out of the State of the Union Address

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