Chief Operating Officer Dan Beard enjoys poking Congressman Don Young with a big pointy stick. But then who doesn't?

So I am reading this fairly boring article on the greening of the Capitol building, and how the effort is being led by a Chief Operating Officer Dan Beard, a man I have never even heard of before. I am just about to click off of the page, when I see this little tidbit:

And he’s not afraid to tweak Republicans. (Oooh this guy might be worth a little more attention since he is playing my song.)

Take the painting in Beard’s office, which depicts a Native American standing over the body of a white man. Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska), an avid outdoorsman, wants the painting for his office. (Oh boy! One of the Republicans he likes to tweak is our very own Don Young, a man that I have a deep and abiding dislike for, now Congressman Beard has moved up my list from "Don't know the guy" to "One of my favorite Congressmen.) The piece, which originally hung in what was then called the House Interior Committee, was taken down at the request of then-Colorado Rep. Ben Nighthorse Campbell, who is part Northern Cheyenne Indian. Young took it out of storage in 1995 and put it up in the committee room.

When Democrats took control in 2007, the painting was taken down again, and Beard grabbed it for himself. (Aha! A caper!)

“Mr. Young has been looking for it; he hasn’t found it yet,” Beard said, joking that it would be removed from his “cold, dead hand.” (Okay this is just priceless! Congressman Beard has taken an offensive painting that Don Young covets, probably for no other reason then he knows it will irritate the shit out of the congressman from Alaska. I love it!)

Beard had not talked publicly about his possession of the painting, and he hesitated to say whether he would hand over the painting to the congressman. (Anybody want to lay any bets on the chances he will return it to Congressman Young? Not a chance my friends.)

Now to be honest I have no way of knowing if the above painting is the one that is driving Representative Young crazy, but it was the only one that I could find on Google that seemed to match the description in the article.

Besides considering what Congressman Young's office looks like it would be just tacky enough to fit right in.

Oh yeah, that painting should blend right in with this "ornaments of death" motif.

I wonder if this guy ever met an animal he did not try to assassinate?

Well I just hope that Dan Beard keeps a hold on that painting, and then in 2012 when Don Young gets his ass handed to him (Or earlier if the Feds will get off their asses and finally indict the guy!) and has to leave the Congress, he can offer it to him as a consolation prize that he can proudly hang in his PRIVATE residence.

P.S. Regina, one of my very frequent visitors, has located an actual link to the picture in question. A little less ferocious then the image I found but still in poor taste.