John Boehner wants you to meet his pet monkey.
Well, it’s not a real monkey, but the Speaker of the House certainly enjoys the company of the clapping wind-up monkey toy that has been a fixture on his coffee table since Boehner’s 62nd birthday.
Boehner’s office released a video entitled “The Monkey in the Room” that spotlights the toy, which has made its presence known to visitors and in photos on the speaker’s Flickr page.
“It all started in the fall of 2011, when Speaker Boehner joked in an interview that some days he felt like a windup toy because his jam-packed scheduled kept him so busy,” reads the post that accompanies the video. “So, as a light-hearted token of appreciation (and a less-than-subtle reminder to not use that metaphor again), Speaker Boehner’s staff brought the monkey to the U.S. Capitol.”
The clapping monkey has been “eavesdropping and photobombing” from Boehner’s coffee table for nearly three years.
“This sits in my office on my coffee table because this is me,” Boehner says of the monkey in his video.
“My staff gave it to me,” he continues. “Every 15, 30 minutes, they come in and wind me up and I do my thing.”
A few cute little girls even make an appearance in the clip. The monkey predictably appears to be very child friendly.
Watch the full video below:
