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Tiny Horses Charge the Hill

OK, which member of Congress tried to bring two miniature horses into the Cannon House Office Building?  

Tried?” Not ‘tried,’ ‘did !'” a gleeful HOH tipster squealed. “The member did bring two miniature horses into Cannon!” According to this source and several others, one of the 433 members of the House escorted a pair of smaller-than-average equine creatures onto campus on May 14.  

The lawmaker, sources said, explained the horses were part of Police Week festivities and it appears they were at least tangentially related.  

While no members stepped forward, the Facebook page for the Gainesville, Fla., nonprofit “Gentle Carousel Miniature Therapy Horses,” says it matches the horses with families coping with the loss of a police officer family member or those who were victims of a terrible crime.  

The Facebook page includes two photos from May 14. One features the horses — designated “deputies” named “Valor” and “Magic” — taking a stroll down a House office corridor:

pony1
(Photo courtesy of Gentle Carousel Therapy Horses)

The other photo depicts Deputy Valor posing at a committee hearing room dais:

pony2
(Photo courtesy of Gentle Carousel Therapy Horses)

According to Gentle Carousel’s website, Valor was named for a police officer killed in New York City during the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and with whom Valor shares a patriotic birthday: July 4.  

So who was the lawmaker involved? Perhaps those involved in the Congressional Horse Caucus? Perhaps a fan of Lil’ Sebastian and the TV series “Parks and Recreation” ? We may never know. But we do know which members got to hang out with the horses: Florida Reps. Ted Yoho, a Republican, and Gwen Graham, a Democrat.  

Yoho, a large animal veterinarian, showed the horses off on his Facebook page.

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Photo courtesy of Rep. Ted Yoho, R-Fla.

Graham posted on Twitter and Facebook that she had the privilege of meeting Deputy Magic at a Police Week vigil on May 13.  

Her office confirmed that while she loves animals and supports Gentle Carousel’s work, she didn’t sponsor the visit, or walk them through the metal detectors.  

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