Mule on Capitol Lawn Lightens the Mood

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By KFBB News Team

Story Published: Apr 23, 2009 at 8:11 PM MDT

Story Updated: Apr 23, 2009 at 8:11 PM MDT

It’s not something you see everyday at the Capitol. As legislators arrived at work Thursday, they were greeted by Jesse, a mule owned by Representative Joel Boniek of Livingston.

Representative Boniek made the decision to ride his mule to work as a change of pace. Jesse has been staying with Boniek in Helena throughout the session and this is the first time he’s been to the Capitol. Boniek and Jesse have been a pair for almost a decade, and the two have made many journeys together, including trips to Alaska and Canada. Boniek thought bringing Jesse to work would lighten the mood around the Capitol as session comes to a close.

Representative Boniek (R) explained, “It’s been a real positive because it’s given us a chance to talk about something other than politics, and people come up to me and we talk about human interest things. And everybody has a horse or a mule story. This is like going around the neighborhood with your dog. When you have your dog people come up to you that would never talk to you, and they will say, ‘I love your dog’ or they would just start a conversation, and it’s really open and friendly with people.”

The Republican Representative claims the mule, who is half donkey, is his favorite Democrat friend.

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