Bailey Versus Bailey

I needed to speak with Representative Jules Bailey for a feature I'm working on about Mandarin language education in Oregon.  I knew he was at the capitol for a meeting of House Interim Committee on Environment and Water, but his assistant told me the Portland Democrat was hitting the road immediately afterwards and wouldn't have time for an interview.  If I kept it brief, however, Bailey would step away from the meeting for a few minutes to speak with me.

But when I arrived at the hearing room, Bailey's assistant flagged me down and told me I'd have to wait.  The reason?  Bailey wanted a chance to grill the person currently testifying before the committee.  That person was Bailey's father, Bob Bailey.  The senior Bailey is the manager of Oregon's Coastal Management Program.  After listening to his father's testimony, Representative Bailey asked a fairly complicated question about the potential impact of oil and gas drilling on coastal ecosystems.  Bob Bailey, perhaps hinting that things were not always this way in the Bailey household, responded to his son:  "You actually were listening, weren't you?"

(For the record, following the father-son showdown, Representative Bailey did have time to speak with me.)