Bill Young, longtime Fla. congressman, dies

Rep. Bill Young of Florida, the senior Republican in the U.S. House and a defense hawk who was influential on military spending during his 43 years in Washington, died Friday. He was 82.

His chief of staff, Harry Glenn, said in an email that Young died at 6:50 p.m. at Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., where he had been for nearly two weeks with back problems that stemmed from a 1970 small-plane crash. The email included a statement from Young's family, saying relatives were with Young when he died from complications related to a chronic injury.

On Oct. 9, from his hospital bed, Young announced that his current 22nd term would be his last and he wouldn't seek re-election in 2014.

The congressman was a longtime member of the House Appropriations Committee, where he focused on military spending. He and his wife frequently visited service members at hospitals in the Washington area.

First elected to the House in 1970, Young was one of the strongest supporters in Congress of defense. So he made headlines in 2012 when he said the United States should withdraw its forces from Afghanistan. Young told The Associated Press at the time that "we're killing kids who don't need to die," and reflected the growing weariness with a conflict that had dragged on for more than a decade.

Young was considered the elder statesman of the state's Republican Party and in the U.S. House of Representatives.

As news of Young's death spread, tributes poured in from political leaders, including President Barack Obama.

"He will be remembered for his advocacy and support for the armed forces, service members, and their families as well as his long history of working across the aisle to keep our country moving forward," Obama said in a statement. -- AP