It is suddenly a bit of an open question whether the last person to touch Rep. Don Young (R-AK) somehow ended up dead.
Earlier this month, according to the Alaska Dispatch News, Young’s Democratic challenger Forrest Dunbar said that he had put his hand on Young’s arm backstage while they were talking before a debate.
“He freaked out. There is no other way to describe it,” Dunbar told ADN. “He kind of snarled at me and said, ‘Don’t you ever touch me. Don’t ever touch me. The last guy who touched me ended up on the ground dead.'”
A radio station employee who was backstage confirmed to ADN that she heard Young, 81, saying “something about the last guy who touched me, blah, blah” to Dunbar, who is 30.
So what’s up with that?
Well, Roll Call profiled Young this week, noting that he has “a reputation for being ornery, aggressive — and maybe even a little unstable.” The news outlet asked Young about the exchange with Dunbar.
CQ Roll Call asked Young about that comment — whether the last person to touch him really did end up dead. The congressman’s response: “There’s some truth to that.”
It’s unclear if he was suggesting there was some truth to what Dunbar said, or, more hair-raisingly, if there was some truth to someone ending up dead. Young didn’t elaborate, and his press secretary instructed CQ Roll Call to move on.
Which, it is safe to say, raises some questions.
TPM’s request for clarity from Young’s spokesperson Friday was not immediately returned.
(h/t NY Mag)
