Peaceful Protest Prompted U.S. Capitol Lawn Gyrocopter Landing, Pilot Says

A Florida mailman on a mission to deliver a message to Congress found himself in handcuffs Wednesday.

It seems Doug Hughes, 61, has been on a crusade to draw attention to the need for America to reform its campaign finance rules for some time. His website, thedemocracyclub.org, detailed his plans to personally deliver letters to all members of Congress to raise awareness about campaign finance corruption. It also laid out plans for the flight.

Hughes reportedly touched down on the U.S. Capitol lawn Wednesday afternoon, raising alarm, forcing a temporary lockdown of the Capitol Visitor Center and drawing Capitol Police.

The gyrocopter pilot was lucky he didn’t land closer to the building, TBO reported. It seems House Homeland Security panel Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said it if had authorities were prepared to shoot Hughes down.

“Had it gotten any closer to the speaker’s balcony they have long guns to take it down, but it didn’t. It landed right in front,” TBO quoted McCaul as saying.

“Let me say first – this is a non-violent demonstration,” Hughes wrote on his website long before Wednesday’s flight. “I have no intention of hurting anyone – I have taken every precaution to prevent any injury to anyone, including me.“

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On his website, Hughes says he’s been a mailman for 11 years in the Sunshine State and once served in the Navy. He’s a married father of four who once flew with his own father, a private pilot. He’s also an outspoken proponent of the need for government reform.

“Congress has an approval rating at record lows, and concern about government corruption is at record highs,” Hughes wrote on his website. “Groups with credible leadership and well-developed plans for reform should be as popular as free ice cream in Miami in August. I’m convinced that the issue of Congressional reform is black-listed by the corporate (network & cable news) media. The reason is pretty obvious if you think about it.”

In the months and weeks leading up to Hughes’ Wednesday flight, he made no secret about his plans. The Tampa Bay Times reported he loaded up his gyrocopter late last week and headed to a location he wouldn’t disclose outside of the nation’s capital. He also brought the letters demanding reform with him.

“No sane person would do what I’m doing,” the Times quoted Hughes as saying before the flight.

It is currently unclear what charges Hughes faces as a result of his protest flight.

His close friend Mike Shanahan of Apollo Beach insists “he’s not a suicide bomber, he’s a patriot,” according to the Times.

To read more about Hughes’ objections to the goings on in Washington, D.C., visit his website.

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