Paul Ryan’s Whiskers Prompt Look at House Precedent
Speaker Paul D. Ryan may have stolen “Movember.”
Mr. Ryan, the
Wisconsin Republican, returned from his Thanksgiving break with some
serious stubble, prompting questions of whether he was participating in
the annual fund-raiser in which men ditch their razors in November.
Proud of his furry face, Mr. Ryan wondered on social media whether he was, in fact, the first bearded House speaker in a century.
While it was has not
quite been 100 years, Mr. Ryan was close. According to the House
historian, the last speaker with a beard was the appropriately named
Frederick H. Gillett, who presided over the chamber until 1925.
Politicians have
generally preferred to be fresh-faced for much of the last century.
However, as historians have noted, that was not always the case.
The House’s History, Art and Archives department dug into the subject
in 2013 and found that Speaker Thomas B. Reed, Republican of Maine,
garnered headlines in The Boston Daily Globe, thanks to two weeks’ worth
of growth on his upper lip. In November 1895, the newspaper
characterized his mustache as a “trifle fuller than before and somewhat
longer, with a downward curve that promises to give his smile more the
general appearance of a sneer.”
But the look did not last, and Mr. Reed showed up for work cleanshaven the next month.
On Monday, Mr. Ryan’s
beard drew mixed reviews online, with some suggesting it was little more
than five o’clock shadow and others urging him to let it grow.
A spokeswoman for Mr.
Ryan said that the beard was not a Movember move, but was actually a
remnant of a weekend “deer camp.” As for its permanence, it seems that
one constituent will have the deciding vote.
“He’ll keep it as long as Janna lets him,” she said, referring to Mr. Ryan’s wife.
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http://www.nytimes.com/politics/first-draft/2015/12/01/paul-ryans-beard-prompts-look-at-house-precedent/
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