Randy Lefko
Correspondent
ORANGE PARK -- As a political junky of sorts, Clay High graduate Bruce Butler was a bit awestruck sitting within 15 feet of First Lady Michelle Obama and in the same room as every political bigwig in the United States.
“As I sat there, the sergeant at arms would be introducing the members as they arrived like the Supreme Court justices, the Cabinet members and then all the Congressional delegates,” said Butler, a 1999 graduate and now a federal game warden for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Department. “I watch C-Span and CNN and all the news shows and hear and read about people like Eric Holder, attorney general, Justice Sotomayer, Senators John McCain and John Kerry, and all of a sudden, I was in the same room with them. It was quite daunting.”
Butler had made a request to see the Jan. 27 State of the Union address through U.S. Congressman Adam Putnam of Florida’s district 12 which encompasses Polk, Hillsborough and Osceola counties for whom Butler worked as a congressional intern years ago.
“About December, I emailed him and made the request,” said Butler. “Each congressman has a certain number of seats available in the gallery and it took about three months to finally get word back that I had been invited.”
Butler remembers the intense security of the Capital Building as the night approached to see the President’s address.
“On the back of the invitation, it gives you a set of rules; no cameras, electronic devices, applause, smoking, etc., and when we finally got there after dinner, I went through three separate security checkpoints before being seated,” said Butler, 29. “The doors opened at 7:30 p.m. and we had to be seated by 8:30 for the President to start at 9 p.m.”
After being notified of the invitation, Butler flew from his station in Puerto Rico to Baltimore, met with family and friends for a night, then headed to the Capital. He said everyone in his family was glued to the televisions and taping the event in hopes of a peek at Butler in the gallery.
“I was seated right behind the pivoting camera that scanned the gallery so it would have been very hard to actually get on camera,” said Butler. “Everyone checked it and some even said they saw me, but there was no actual sightings. Quite funny.”
Butler said when First Lady Obama entered, he watched her as she was seated, but was unable to make a visit.
“Just too many people around her,” said Butler. “President Obama was about 60 feet away and below me so that was impossible. Closest I got was seeing his limousine entourage leave afterward.”
For Butler, the experience of the State of the Union Address plus his visit to Washington, D.C. for the inauguration were firsts for himself as well as his family.
“It didn’t have to be any particular president for me to go, but President Obama being the first African American elected made it more special,” said Butler.
February 5th 2010 - 6:25PM