I put pictures of the D.C. area on Facebook... click here!
And another note, sorry if it was a confusing first email, but you do NOT have to subscribe to the blog to read it. The site will always be here.
Also, an issue that was mentioned to me was to those of you not used to reading blogs, the underlined words are links, usually to the website of what I am talking about.
Lucas
1/20/07
1/19/07
Full Speed
Today was not too exciting as far as my activities, but I did receive word on exciting things ahead. We started with a staff meeting where the rest of the staff had chipped in to get my boss a massage at 3:30 today, and the computer technician a gift certificate with the afternoon off, as they had both been working overtime and on the weekend to try to align our office with the schedule we should be on. I was awarded a desk and computer this morning, which meant I was able to complete one of my projects and start another. It was really a relief to me and the rest of the office as my stash of papers was starting to pile up. I think we were close to what we would call "normal" as far as day-to-day operations go, with a few minor pieces, like mailboxes and the fact that our back room looks like a giant storage closet, left to fit in the puzzle.
Gabe and I were able to go to a Government Accountability Office meeting. This is probably the most interesting government agency you have never heard of. While the name sounds like they should be something out of the IRS or OMB (Office of Management and Budget), but is really more closely related to things like the USDA, FDA, FTC, and SEC. The GAO is the office run by the Comptroller General. They are basically the general research arm that government can use for testimony and references. We were handed a 10 page packet of research today, with writing on both sides. On each page there were about 10 reports on research the GAO had done in the past 3 years, making about 200 reports in this one packet. Because it was in alphabetical order, agriculture came first, and I just assumed we would continue on to health, money, and science reports as we flipped through the pages. But when I opened up the book, I realized that these were ALL agricultural reports, on important issues that either the Senate, House, or an agency like the USDA had applied to had researched. Recent reports included everything from ethanol and commodity pricing as well as sod-busting and avian flu. Most of what the GAO does is report and testify to Congress, which is why they were coming to us to "tell us they were there." Most of the staff in the room had of course always worked in the minority in the past, so knew little about the agency as their requests would not matter as much. It was interesting to see them as another side of research that maybe funds projects that Universities would not approach, or was there when needed as a (hopefully) less-biased institution.
My upcoming project is to research Animal ID/NAIS as with my computer I successfully completed an ethanol and biodiesel fact sheet for reference of one of our staff. As part of this project I will be able to attend a closed-door meeting where I will meet the man from the USDA in charge of NAIS, to find out exactly why we have made almost no progress over the past couple of years. My most exciting news was a picture session with Mike Johanns, current Secretary of Agriculture and former Nebraska governor. I also need to come up with good questions to ask and have information to answer questions like "Where do you see agriculture going?" and "What interests you in agriculture?"
The great thing about this job is that I am always looking forward to something, and I can work in-between the moments of opportunity. I was asked to bartend and/or sign in guests at a social before the State of the Union next Wednesday, with extra pay, as it is a group that Mr. Chairman co-chairs, which will be a good time to see many members of Congress and other people with much more power than I have. This weekend I plan to take pictures, if offices are open, to try and better show and explain some of the things I am talking about. The two day break will be refreshing as I managed to travel by subway and bus to a Target, so I could stock up for the weekend. I hope I learn as much next week as I did in week one. I will be doing homework and other housekeeping stuff, so if you have any questions, drop me an email or give me a ring, and I would love to chat! Have a good weekend!
Gabe and I were able to go to a Government Accountability Office meeting. This is probably the most interesting government agency you have never heard of. While the name sounds like they should be something out of the IRS or OMB (Office of Management and Budget), but is really more closely related to things like the USDA, FDA, FTC, and SEC. The GAO is the office run by the Comptroller General. They are basically the general research arm that government can use for testimony and references. We were handed a 10 page packet of research today, with writing on both sides. On each page there were about 10 reports on research the GAO had done in the past 3 years, making about 200 reports in this one packet. Because it was in alphabetical order, agriculture came first, and I just assumed we would continue on to health, money, and science reports as we flipped through the pages. But when I opened up the book, I realized that these were ALL agricultural reports, on important issues that either the Senate, House, or an agency like the USDA had applied to had researched. Recent reports included everything from ethanol and commodity pricing as well as sod-busting and avian flu. Most of what the GAO does is report and testify to Congress, which is why they were coming to us to "tell us they were there." Most of the staff in the room had of course always worked in the minority in the past, so knew little about the agency as their requests would not matter as much. It was interesting to see them as another side of research that maybe funds projects that Universities would not approach, or was there when needed as a (hopefully) less-biased institution.
My upcoming project is to research Animal ID/NAIS as with my computer I successfully completed an ethanol and biodiesel fact sheet for reference of one of our staff. As part of this project I will be able to attend a closed-door meeting where I will meet the man from the USDA in charge of NAIS, to find out exactly why we have made almost no progress over the past couple of years. My most exciting news was a picture session with Mike Johanns, current Secretary of Agriculture and former Nebraska governor. I also need to come up with good questions to ask and have information to answer questions like "Where do you see agriculture going?" and "What interests you in agriculture?"
The great thing about this job is that I am always looking forward to something, and I can work in-between the moments of opportunity. I was asked to bartend and/or sign in guests at a social before the State of the Union next Wednesday, with extra pay, as it is a group that Mr. Chairman co-chairs, which will be a good time to see many members of Congress and other people with much more power than I have. This weekend I plan to take pictures, if offices are open, to try and better show and explain some of the things I am talking about. The two day break will be refreshing as I managed to travel by subway and bus to a Target, so I could stock up for the weekend. I hope I learn as much next week as I did in week one. I will be doing homework and other housekeeping stuff, so if you have any questions, drop me an email or give me a ring, and I would love to chat! Have a good weekend!
1/18/07
Stepping Stones
I finally learned something my teachers had always been trying to tell me: MAJORITY RULES! At sometime during a 4H, Student Council, FFA, Boys' State, or Alpha Gamma Rho meeting, I understood that the motion with more votes, would win. I understand parliamentary procedure, and the concept behind voting to make decisions, but until today, I did not understand just how much the majority in fact does rule. The House of Representatives has rules that make up its body, like most organizations. The rules include information about committees having the same ratio as the full House, how long someone is able to speak, and how they will be starting and ending each day. Somewhere in the mix of the parliamentary information is a rule about staff. Whether the majority is 100% or 50.1%, the majority party has both 2/3 the staff and budget, for every Committee across the board. This means they are able to do twice as much research, be in twice as many places, and in theory help twice as many citizens. In our case, we are adding new staff every day. I believe last years number was something like 14, so this year the cap is around 28. I do not know who is actually "staff of the House Ag. Committee" and who is not, but I have had to learn a new name every day, while I know most of the Republicans. We also get the corner office, which is THE Agriculture Office, run the website and answer the phones. When you call the House Committee on Agriculture, who you are speaking to is actually the majority party office. Every once in a while we will send someone down to the Republican office, but there is really no reason unless it has something to do with only Republicans, as the Democrats (and more importantly Mr. Peterson and his office) control the committee and what it does. For the most part we can do as we please.
I thought the 2/3 staff rule was unusual, but then there are the Senate's rules... and these rules I have known about for some time, but it is hard to hear that they still exist. But of course, those in power will keep the rules so that they stay in power. I have one example (of many) of how these rules are so powerful. This year we will be working on a Farm Bill. If it were a perfect world (for our office) everyone would agree to what we say, and it would move out of committee with unanimous approval. Then the House would vote and again have a unanimous Yea vote to send the bill to the next step, which is either a conference committee with the Senate or the President. If Mr. Chairman hated the bill, he would not present it to the house. However, the full House could still pull it out of committee using a 2/3 vote.
In the Senate, there is no such rule. Mr. Harkin, the Senate Ag. Chair from Iowa, does not agree with some of the policies from our office. If he did not approve of our Farm Bill, he could sit on his committee's version as long as he wanted, and just wait for the session to end. He, as a Senate Chairman, has much more power than a House Chairman. It is this kind of power that worries many in our office, as even if we have all the votes for the bill, Mr. Harkin, who is involved with Ag. but thinks a little differently, can stop anything from happening. So even though our majority in both houses exists, we may now have to find a lesser of two evils deal.
My day started off with normal mail sorting and email deletion, and then onto little projects like sorting bills and printing labels. At 10:45 I was treated to attend a speech by our office's Minnesota Agriculture person, to the Midwest Association of Governors. This was held in a building which I am not sure of the name, but it houses C-SPAN, Fox, NBC and many other media outlets into little sets, which look much bigger on TV, when you see pictures of the Capitol or White House in the background (think Meet the Press). It also houses about 90% of the States, and serves as offices away from home for Governors and their staff. At this meeting we had Governors' staff from Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Ohio, along with me, my boss, and the Farm Bill spokesperson from Chairman Harkin's (the Senate Ag. Chair from Iowa) office. I was sitting in between two people who know more about what the Farm Bill can look like than anyone in the universe. We talked ethanol, MILC, and California, and then proceeded to the Minnesota office to talk about setting up a testimony at a hearing by Governor Pawlenty in front of the Ag. Committee. I never realized how important it was for a governor to be in Washington (Pawlenty was today) and know what is going on. It would be a waste of time if either Congress or the State was working towards a similar law, which is why there are so many state offices within blocks of the Capitol. We also needed our badges to get into this building, as it is basically an extension of Capitol hill, being as close as possible behind the federal buildings.
I had lunch with the Science Policy Director for the Weed Science Societies. We quickly found out we were both AGRs, he was from Iota (Wisconsin-Madison) and came from smaller crop and dairy farms. He is actually the only person from his organization (it is a volunteer society) on the Hill. We had a very good conversation about what he did and how he got there. He said that he has worked as both a scientist giving information and a policy director helping make decisions, but with the rest of Agriculture, he was a bottom feeder. While in my microcosm I see Agriculture as one of the most important and pressing topics each day, most people, especially Congressmen, don't. He said he has approached Congressmen that will tell him that they "do not support illegal drug use," so his title alone can start him off on the wrong foot. After he tells them, "we kill them, we don't smoke them," it is still hard to get most people to listen on how big of a deal noxious weeds are, and trying to get the money back that Agriculture was promised in an '04 bill that was made to help get rid of them. He did also say that he really enjoys his job when he can meet with others in agriculture, as they have a common bond (maybe beer?) that allows their conversation and workings to go a lot more smoothly, no matter the party our house of Congress, compared to other committees. After meeting with him I really can see myself working on the Hill (as well as a billion other places), as it puts things in perspective that maybe life out here isn't so chaotic after all. He reflected that many Congressmen saw Agriculture as a stepping stone, where he and I both truly believe that the House Ag. Chair is the spot Mr. Peterson wants to be. He said the same thing one of the people in my office said about the Republican ranking member, last year's chair of the Ag. Committee., Mr. Goodlate. They both talked about how he probably wanted the Judiciary Committee Chair, being that he was a lawyer, and took Ag. because he could, just to "add a notch to the belt." I see this as horrible policy in a place like the U.S. Congress, but fine for your local 4H club. To me chairing a committee should be something you really want to do, and not a PR stunt.
When I returned to the office after lunch, the House quickly passed HR 6, the provision to increase Renewable Energy funding and lessen dependence on foreign oil. Mr. Chairman ran the Agriculture portion of the 4 committee debate, which lasted about an hour out of a total 5 or 6 hour bill discussion. Many Republicans also voted for this bill, and didn't listen to their colleagues talking how this bill was actually helping create more jobs in the Middle East. One thing I have realized is that when you sit in an office spitting out only one side of everything, it is really easy to become part of that office. It's everything from setting policy to details on newspapers. Yes, the more liberal the paper, the higher on the stack it goes, filtering conservative information to the bottom. I know how our office stands on a lot of issues, and have to believe they are right, as I only hear all the good things for one side of each debate.
I received word on some really interesting projects added to my docket for when I get a computer. They include doing research on ethanol, animal ID, and possibly helping to write "Legislative Histories," which are placed in the National Archives. The last is just something that came up today because I did not have a desk, everything happens for a reason. Friday will be a nice end to a busy short week. We may get a Capitol tour so we would be able to give them in the future, and hopefully I end up with a real desk by the end of the Friday. Our computers currently lost their "backup" capabilities, so I will not have a password for sometime, but look forward to the day I do less sitting on the couch, and more typing. Yeah, you're right. That does sound really weird coming from a college student.
I thought the 2/3 staff rule was unusual, but then there are the Senate's rules... and these rules I have known about for some time, but it is hard to hear that they still exist. But of course, those in power will keep the rules so that they stay in power. I have one example (of many) of how these rules are so powerful. This year we will be working on a Farm Bill. If it were a perfect world (for our office) everyone would agree to what we say, and it would move out of committee with unanimous approval. Then the House would vote and again have a unanimous Yea vote to send the bill to the next step, which is either a conference committee with the Senate or the President. If Mr. Chairman hated the bill, he would not present it to the house. However, the full House could still pull it out of committee using a 2/3 vote.
In the Senate, there is no such rule. Mr. Harkin, the Senate Ag. Chair from Iowa, does not agree with some of the policies from our office. If he did not approve of our Farm Bill, he could sit on his committee's version as long as he wanted, and just wait for the session to end. He, as a Senate Chairman, has much more power than a House Chairman. It is this kind of power that worries many in our office, as even if we have all the votes for the bill, Mr. Harkin, who is involved with Ag. but thinks a little differently, can stop anything from happening. So even though our majority in both houses exists, we may now have to find a lesser of two evils deal.
My day started off with normal mail sorting and email deletion, and then onto little projects like sorting bills and printing labels. At 10:45 I was treated to attend a speech by our office's Minnesota Agriculture person, to the Midwest Association of Governors. This was held in a building which I am not sure of the name, but it houses C-SPAN, Fox, NBC and many other media outlets into little sets, which look much bigger on TV, when you see pictures of the Capitol or White House in the background (think Meet the Press). It also houses about 90% of the States, and serves as offices away from home for Governors and their staff. At this meeting we had Governors' staff from Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Ohio, along with me, my boss, and the Farm Bill spokesperson from Chairman Harkin's (the Senate Ag. Chair from Iowa) office. I was sitting in between two people who know more about what the Farm Bill can look like than anyone in the universe. We talked ethanol, MILC, and California, and then proceeded to the Minnesota office to talk about setting up a testimony at a hearing by Governor Pawlenty in front of the Ag. Committee. I never realized how important it was for a governor to be in Washington (Pawlenty was today) and know what is going on. It would be a waste of time if either Congress or the State was working towards a similar law, which is why there are so many state offices within blocks of the Capitol. We also needed our badges to get into this building, as it is basically an extension of Capitol hill, being as close as possible behind the federal buildings.
I had lunch with the Science Policy Director for the Weed Science Societies. We quickly found out we were both AGRs, he was from Iota (Wisconsin-Madison) and came from smaller crop and dairy farms. He is actually the only person from his organization (it is a volunteer society) on the Hill. We had a very good conversation about what he did and how he got there. He said that he has worked as both a scientist giving information and a policy director helping make decisions, but with the rest of Agriculture, he was a bottom feeder. While in my microcosm I see Agriculture as one of the most important and pressing topics each day, most people, especially Congressmen, don't. He said he has approached Congressmen that will tell him that they "do not support illegal drug use," so his title alone can start him off on the wrong foot. After he tells them, "we kill them, we don't smoke them," it is still hard to get most people to listen on how big of a deal noxious weeds are, and trying to get the money back that Agriculture was promised in an '04 bill that was made to help get rid of them. He did also say that he really enjoys his job when he can meet with others in agriculture, as they have a common bond (maybe beer?) that allows their conversation and workings to go a lot more smoothly, no matter the party our house of Congress, compared to other committees. After meeting with him I really can see myself working on the Hill (as well as a billion other places), as it puts things in perspective that maybe life out here isn't so chaotic after all. He reflected that many Congressmen saw Agriculture as a stepping stone, where he and I both truly believe that the House Ag. Chair is the spot Mr. Peterson wants to be. He said the same thing one of the people in my office said about the Republican ranking member, last year's chair of the Ag. Committee., Mr. Goodlate. They both talked about how he probably wanted the Judiciary Committee Chair, being that he was a lawyer, and took Ag. because he could, just to "add a notch to the belt." I see this as horrible policy in a place like the U.S. Congress, but fine for your local 4H club. To me chairing a committee should be something you really want to do, and not a PR stunt.
When I returned to the office after lunch, the House quickly passed HR 6, the provision to increase Renewable Energy funding and lessen dependence on foreign oil. Mr. Chairman ran the Agriculture portion of the 4 committee debate, which lasted about an hour out of a total 5 or 6 hour bill discussion. Many Republicans also voted for this bill, and didn't listen to their colleagues talking how this bill was actually helping create more jobs in the Middle East. One thing I have realized is that when you sit in an office spitting out only one side of everything, it is really easy to become part of that office. It's everything from setting policy to details on newspapers. Yes, the more liberal the paper, the higher on the stack it goes, filtering conservative information to the bottom. I know how our office stands on a lot of issues, and have to believe they are right, as I only hear all the good things for one side of each debate.
I received word on some really interesting projects added to my docket for when I get a computer. They include doing research on ethanol, animal ID, and possibly helping to write "Legislative Histories," which are placed in the National Archives. The last is just something that came up today because I did not have a desk, everything happens for a reason. Friday will be a nice end to a busy short week. We may get a Capitol tour so we would be able to give them in the future, and hopefully I end up with a real desk by the end of the Friday. Our computers currently lost their "backup" capabilities, so I will not have a password for sometime, but look forward to the day I do less sitting on the couch, and more typing. Yeah, you're right. That does sound really weird coming from a college student.
1/17/07
Constructive Criticism
I woke this morning to find myself in Minnesota-like weather. That is, Minnesota weather in the Fall. My walk to work had fewer sirens and horns than Tuesday, as the people and cars have parked for the work-week, leaving little traffic in the Capitol Hill area. One thing different in D.C. from when I was here in 11th grade, is all the construction. The American History Museum is actually closed until the Summer of 2008, with about 15 trailer houses (holding construction workers) fenced into an area between its entrance and the sidewalk on Constitution Avenue, as workers install major changes inside. In the House Office Buildings, carpet is being torn up and wires fished through the ceilings as teams finish up renovations that are needed when offices were changed. The Capitol itself is closed off in many areas due to crews working, and there is no longer a direct route from the House to the Senate via the Capitol basement.
But amid all the remodeling, I was finally given the token to more privileges, my badge. This badge does not really have as much respect as one would think, or at least as I did. Arriving yesterday in the House Office Building for only the second time in my life, I realized just how open to people the building is. Because I saw the Capitol area as a place of such privilege, I never realized that it truly belongs to me. In Mr. Chairman's office, instead of a sign with the name of the receptionist it states, "This Office Belongs to the people of the 7th Congressional District of Minnesota." Which, in this crazy world of politics and partisanship, gives me hope that we are still moving in the right direction, what the pace is though, I am unsure. One great thing the badge does is keep me out of the cold. I am now about to walk under the Capitol freely, and others (visitors) are able to walk with me, which will be great when friends and family come to visit. I felt powerful today (although I am not, compared to others) when I walked past the sign that read "NO VISITORS BEYOND THIS POINT" on my way home.
Today was a really busy day in our office. I called 1/4 of House Ag. Committee Democrats members' offices (don't worry, the other 3/4 were called by others) to remind them of our 2:00 meeting. I was also able to attend a meeting with an energy non-profit from Minnesota. I was only able to stay for about 10 minutes, thus not remembering the name, but it was interesting watching lobbyists interact with staff, which is hard to explain, but I hope to post more about this later on. After that we held the Democratic Caucus for the House Agriculture Committee next door. Although I was unable to attend the meeting, I did put most of the booklets and folders together for the 25-member Committee, including "the boss" and my Discrict 1 Representative Tim Walz, which were used at the meeting today. This gave me an inside look at the exact processes of what the committee does. The meeting was by far the biggest attention we received so far. First, this was the first time the committee had ever met, so the press were asking for transcripts from the meeting starting at about 3:00 yesterday. Next, the committee elected Chairs of the six new subcommittees, which were controversial to say the least. The new committees included Horticulture and Organic Agriculture, which prompted a call from an organic organization to tell me they were, and I quote, "Tickled pink to hear" that we had made a subcommittee about Organic Agriculture. I do have my own views (shared with others) on the subject, but I see it as is an important issue to address, and I hope that anything decided in that Subcommittee receives much scrutiny and research, so that we know the truth. Once the meeting had let out, phones were off the hooks, with every call being transferred to our poor press secretary's voice mail. Of course we would not have the press release until much much later, but there was no use in telling a reporter that.
We had big names in our office today, and titles that were too big to remember, including a Brazilian economist, people from Microsoft and Walmart as well as Minnesotans, because Mr. Chairman will be working double duty this 2-year session, we have twice as many people in his offices, but he gets twice as many staff. I would love to tell you I shook all of their hands and spoke with them, but I was moving books containing the Hearing information for the Ag. Committee from the 99th Congress until the 108th. While a chore at first, I was motivated by the fact that these books were the last thing stopping me from having my own desk. When we finished, I was thrilled to hear I would receive the desk in the actual office, while Gabe was unfortunately moved a few doors down the hall. As of tomorrow morning, I will have a desk, as many Post It notes as I wish, and a telephone. On top of all the things I just listed will be papers and assignments. Another thing I do not yet have is a computer code to check my House email and do research projects, but things are obviously moving along quickly, and I am expecting it by the end of the week.
I look forward to tomorrow, as we will be busy as our first bill (HR 06, dealing with cutting oil subsidies and increasing renewable energy, which the boss is deeply involved in) will be presented on the house floor as part of the Democrats first 100 hours, and Mr. Chairman will most likely be speaking. I put together binders (yes our democratic-republican (not Democratic and Republican) government runs off scripts, and interruptions by party members are scheduled in to break up the talking) for the Democrats to read from as the bill is presented on the floor. It is a unique time as the bills were not, in this case [along with the rest of the 100 hours' agenda], sent to a committee, but only to the full floor.
This brings up another point, if you watch CSPAN, you will notice how empty the House is during debates and how full during votes, especially during this 100 hours campaign (because the debates are meaningless because everything is bound to pass). Although we are constantly watching the House Television and can see that the Dems may have majority with just 5:00 min left on a 30 minute vote, "the boss" will run out of a meeting with 1:30 on the clock, just to get in that vote. Although I understand that every vote matters to the District one represents, it is sad that members must break out of meeting to cast a ballot for an already decided vote. Of all things technology-wise, I am impressed that voting on the floor has stood the test of time. Yes, we have moved away from the ballot and hopper to an electronic system of buttons and lights, but the truth is, everyone knows when a bill will be passed. For controversial bills, everyone that cares will be at the debate, and need to vote. I would call this another inefficiency in this flat world that probably needs to stay in place until we have fully developed tele-portation Star-Trek style. I have thrice seen Mr. Chairman literally run out of the office, forcing a citizen or group to wait, just to cast a vote with the rest of his party. This really tells me that voters and the media place much more emphasis on voting, collectively than they should. Each year an opponent of someone will bring up their voting record, spitting out facts about members casting only 25% of the votes during their term. For the future, I will be remembering that I would much rather talk to the largest companies and most advanced countries in the world than voting to suspend the rules so that I can listen to people congratulating the University of Florida Gators on their win over the Ohio State University Buckeyes, so my representatives can too, but I digress.
Tomorrow looks to be a promising day since I will not be walking in as much wind, have my own desk, and be helping (although I could never guess exactly what that means) present H.R. 06 on the House floor. I also have a 1:00 lunch with a Science Policy Director with the National Weed Science Societies, who is a friend of a co-worker at Agriliance at Tortilla Coast. I will be waking up to what they are calling "the coldest day of the year" in D.C., which means absolutely nothing to me.
But amid all the remodeling, I was finally given the token to more privileges, my badge. This badge does not really have as much respect as one would think, or at least as I did. Arriving yesterday in the House Office Building for only the second time in my life, I realized just how open to people the building is. Because I saw the Capitol area as a place of such privilege, I never realized that it truly belongs to me. In Mr. Chairman's office, instead of a sign with the name of the receptionist it states, "This Office Belongs to the people of the 7th Congressional District of Minnesota." Which, in this crazy world of politics and partisanship, gives me hope that we are still moving in the right direction, what the pace is though, I am unsure. One great thing the badge does is keep me out of the cold. I am now about to walk under the Capitol freely, and others (visitors) are able to walk with me, which will be great when friends and family come to visit. I felt powerful today (although I am not, compared to others) when I walked past the sign that read "NO VISITORS BEYOND THIS POINT" on my way home.
Today was a really busy day in our office. I called 1/4 of House Ag. Committee Democrats members' offices (don't worry, the other 3/4 were called by others) to remind them of our 2:00 meeting. I was also able to attend a meeting with an energy non-profit from Minnesota. I was only able to stay for about 10 minutes, thus not remembering the name, but it was interesting watching lobbyists interact with staff, which is hard to explain, but I hope to post more about this later on. After that we held the Democratic Caucus for the House Agriculture Committee next door. Although I was unable to attend the meeting, I did put most of the booklets and folders together for the 25-member Committee, including "the boss" and my Discrict 1 Representative Tim Walz, which were used at the meeting today. This gave me an inside look at the exact processes of what the committee does. The meeting was by far the biggest attention we received so far. First, this was the first time the committee had ever met, so the press were asking for transcripts from the meeting starting at about 3:00 yesterday. Next, the committee elected Chairs of the six new subcommittees, which were controversial to say the least. The new committees included Horticulture and Organic Agriculture, which prompted a call from an organic organization to tell me they were, and I quote, "Tickled pink to hear" that we had made a subcommittee about Organic Agriculture. I do have my own views (shared with others) on the subject, but I see it as is an important issue to address, and I hope that anything decided in that Subcommittee receives much scrutiny and research, so that we know the truth. Once the meeting had let out, phones were off the hooks, with every call being transferred to our poor press secretary's voice mail. Of course we would not have the press release until much much later, but there was no use in telling a reporter that.
We had big names in our office today, and titles that were too big to remember, including a Brazilian economist, people from Microsoft and Walmart as well as Minnesotans, because Mr. Chairman will be working double duty this 2-year session, we have twice as many people in his offices, but he gets twice as many staff. I would love to tell you I shook all of their hands and spoke with them, but I was moving books containing the Hearing information for the Ag. Committee from the 99th Congress until the 108th. While a chore at first, I was motivated by the fact that these books were the last thing stopping me from having my own desk. When we finished, I was thrilled to hear I would receive the desk in the actual office, while Gabe was unfortunately moved a few doors down the hall. As of tomorrow morning, I will have a desk, as many Post It notes as I wish, and a telephone. On top of all the things I just listed will be papers and assignments. Another thing I do not yet have is a computer code to check my House email and do research projects, but things are obviously moving along quickly, and I am expecting it by the end of the week.
I look forward to tomorrow, as we will be busy as our first bill (HR 06, dealing with cutting oil subsidies and increasing renewable energy, which the boss is deeply involved in) will be presented on the house floor as part of the Democrats first 100 hours, and Mr. Chairman will most likely be speaking. I put together binders (yes our democratic-republican (not Democratic and Republican) government runs off scripts, and interruptions by party members are scheduled in to break up the talking) for the Democrats to read from as the bill is presented on the floor. It is a unique time as the bills were not, in this case [along with the rest of the 100 hours' agenda], sent to a committee, but only to the full floor.
This brings up another point, if you watch CSPAN, you will notice how empty the House is during debates and how full during votes, especially during this 100 hours campaign (because the debates are meaningless because everything is bound to pass). Although we are constantly watching the House Television and can see that the Dems may have majority with just 5:00 min left on a 30 minute vote, "the boss" will run out of a meeting with 1:30 on the clock, just to get in that vote. Although I understand that every vote matters to the District one represents, it is sad that members must break out of meeting to cast a ballot for an already decided vote. Of all things technology-wise, I am impressed that voting on the floor has stood the test of time. Yes, we have moved away from the ballot and hopper to an electronic system of buttons and lights, but the truth is, everyone knows when a bill will be passed. For controversial bills, everyone that cares will be at the debate, and need to vote. I would call this another inefficiency in this flat world that probably needs to stay in place until we have fully developed tele-portation Star-Trek style. I have thrice seen Mr. Chairman literally run out of the office, forcing a citizen or group to wait, just to cast a vote with the rest of his party. This really tells me that voters and the media place much more emphasis on voting, collectively than they should. Each year an opponent of someone will bring up their voting record, spitting out facts about members casting only 25% of the votes during their term. For the future, I will be remembering that I would much rather talk to the largest companies and most advanced countries in the world than voting to suspend the rules so that I can listen to people congratulating the University of Florida Gators on their win over the Ohio State University Buckeyes, so my representatives can too, but I digress.
Tomorrow looks to be a promising day since I will not be walking in as much wind, have my own desk, and be helping (although I could never guess exactly what that means) present H.R. 06 on the House floor. I also have a 1:00 lunch with a Science Policy Director with the National Weed Science Societies, who is a friend of a co-worker at Agriliance at Tortilla Coast. I will be waking up to what they are calling "the coldest day of the year" in D.C., which means absolutely nothing to me.
1/16/07
Baptism by Fire
Day one was a learning experience to say the least. I have never seen so many police and power-suits in one 20 minute walk. From the moment I stepped through the metal detector, I knew I was lost. The front door of the Longworth House Office Building had no secretary's desk, no directory, just a couple of the Capitol Police. I asked the female officer, "Where is the reception desk?" "There is no desk honey," she said with a "you're in trouble" look on her face. My boss told me to ask for him when I got to 1301 Longworth. I thought it was funny he gave me an address to get to the building, then it clicked, 1301, floor 13, room 1. "Nevermind ma'am, I got it!"
As I stepped in the elevator and realized there was no floor 13, I pushed 3 to try my luck. In this case I was right. I later learned that you only pay attention to the last 3 numbers to find a room. The first number is the building itself. Cannon Office Building has no 1000 number (ex. 101), while Longworth has a 1 in front (1000's) and Rayburn has a 2 in front (2000's). While confusing at first, it allows you to drop the building from any instructions, and not end up in the right room and the wrong building.
After a few quick introductions, and signing for a badge on a form, my first chore tested the room-number-theory. I had to hand deliver letters to the offices of the House Agriculture Committee Democrats, throughout all 3 buildings. Besides a 15 minute delay not being able to find the right elevator to get back to the underground tunnel, I did pretty well.
Once I returned to the office I realized I showed up for my job one week late. That is, I was not any later than I was supposed to be, but I was a week behind on knowing what everyone else knew, which was not too much... the buildings were organized chaos. Desks, couches and chairs lined the hallways, closely resembling any moving of furniture at my fraternity. You trust everyone not to steal your stuff by putting 8.5 x 11 signs that say "Please Do Not Move." Even in the House of Representatives things get stolen, or I mean misplaced, for a little while. I do not currently have a "place to sit" , but it looks like I will end up with a nice spot in the reception office of the House Agriculture Committee, with a really nice desk and a DELL Desktop with a 20" screen.
We (the other intern, Gabe, a graduated senior from Texas A & M, and I) have to pickup mail at 10:30 & 3:30 in Mr. Chairman's actual office in the Rayburn House Office Building. I concluded that he does not support PETA, as his office adorns heads and mounts of many different animals, along with a lot of other Minnesota memorabilia. His staff was very friendly to us, and I had been noticing this trend since I started handing out letters. Secretaries gave a meaningful "Thank you" each time, as if you were doing them a huge favor. The truth is, interns are in no way glamorous. All receptionists had probably been in our shoes trying to work their way up in the political world at sometime in their lives, and understood how much of our work is mindless, and theirs full of purpose. We headed back to the House Ag. Committee Office and as soon as we stepped out of the elevator to head back into Longworth, we saw a mass of people coming towards us and heard the fire alarm. So we got into the elevator and waited back in Mr. Chairman's office for another 40 minutes. They gave an all clear as it was a false alarm of course. The alarm had devastating effects to everyone's schedules, throwing us all off by two hours. When they mean everyone out, everyone is out. All the restaurants and police have to be re-stationed before anyone was allowed back in. Lunch was delayed for many, but we finally made it back with the mail, sorted it, and then sat and waited. The staff member that interviewed me for the job rolled in at 11:00. He had injured himself in a Flag Football game the night before, and had to get his knee checked out. Then, all the staff disappeared for a meeting about tomorrow's meeting.
Gabe and I took turns answering phones from Horse Slaughter Opponents and people looking for other people. Gabe and I currently share one desk. Because I am new, Gabe has a computer password, and I do not. This meant sitting on the couch, reading the entire Washington Post, front to back, and eating complimentary peanuts. We did a few more random jobs throughout the rest of the day, and I got to meet and talk with Mr. Chairman (which is one of two ways everyone addresses him, otherwise its "the boss" in third person). I also did the typical fetching of lunch and coffee, sealing and stuffing envelopes, and putting people on hold.
I was handed my job description today. I am basically a glorified secretary, and by glorified I do not mean by pay or pecking order in the world, but by being "there" when others cannot, and hearing "things" that may never be repeated. I knew this coming in, and am thankful for the experience, but would be lying if I said I am not going to enjoy what happens after work more than work itself.
As time progresses the work will increase, greatly. Talking with one of our press communicators, she said she has received 10 times as much contact because of both being in the Chairman's office and the approaching Farm Bill.
One big thing I learned today is the lingo of Washington, D.C. I was given many projects, which I have called errands all my life. Projects today included getting coffee, putting together packets and moving computer equipment. I always viewed a project as a 2 or 3 week work that took time and resources, but I'm happy to hear that I never have time to procrastinate and will not be graded.
Basically today was pretty low-key, but life is hard when you don't have "a place to sit." I re-learned how to sort mail and correlate newsletters, two great skills I have learned from my mother. But in my case it was only like 14 mailboxes, and 25 newsletters. I'll give it another try at 9 am tomorrow.
As I stepped in the elevator and realized there was no floor 13, I pushed 3 to try my luck. In this case I was right. I later learned that you only pay attention to the last 3 numbers to find a room. The first number is the building itself. Cannon Office Building has no 1000 number (ex. 101), while Longworth has a 1 in front (1000's) and Rayburn has a 2 in front (2000's). While confusing at first, it allows you to drop the building from any instructions, and not end up in the right room and the wrong building.
After a few quick introductions, and signing for a badge on a form, my first chore tested the room-number-theory. I had to hand deliver letters to the offices of the House Agriculture Committee Democrats, throughout all 3 buildings. Besides a 15 minute delay not being able to find the right elevator to get back to the underground tunnel, I did pretty well.
Once I returned to the office I realized I showed up for my job one week late. That is, I was not any later than I was supposed to be, but I was a week behind on knowing what everyone else knew, which was not too much... the buildings were organized chaos. Desks, couches and chairs lined the hallways, closely resembling any moving of furniture at my fraternity. You trust everyone not to steal your stuff by putting 8.5 x 11 signs that say "Please Do Not Move." Even in the House of Representatives things get stolen, or I mean misplaced, for a little while. I do not currently have a "place to sit" , but it looks like I will end up with a nice spot in the reception office of the House Agriculture Committee, with a really nice desk and a DELL Desktop with a 20" screen.
We (the other intern, Gabe, a graduated senior from Texas A & M, and I) have to pickup mail at 10:30 & 3:30 in Mr. Chairman's actual office in the Rayburn House Office Building. I concluded that he does not support PETA, as his office adorns heads and mounts of many different animals, along with a lot of other Minnesota memorabilia. His staff was very friendly to us, and I had been noticing this trend since I started handing out letters. Secretaries gave a meaningful "Thank you" each time, as if you were doing them a huge favor. The truth is, interns are in no way glamorous. All receptionists had probably been in our shoes trying to work their way up in the political world at sometime in their lives, and understood how much of our work is mindless, and theirs full of purpose. We headed back to the House Ag. Committee Office and as soon as we stepped out of the elevator to head back into Longworth, we saw a mass of people coming towards us and heard the fire alarm. So we got into the elevator and waited back in Mr. Chairman's office for another 40 minutes. They gave an all clear as it was a false alarm of course. The alarm had devastating effects to everyone's schedules, throwing us all off by two hours. When they mean everyone out, everyone is out. All the restaurants and police have to be re-stationed before anyone was allowed back in. Lunch was delayed for many, but we finally made it back with the mail, sorted it, and then sat and waited. The staff member that interviewed me for the job rolled in at 11:00. He had injured himself in a Flag Football game the night before, and had to get his knee checked out. Then, all the staff disappeared for a meeting about tomorrow's meeting.
Gabe and I took turns answering phones from Horse Slaughter Opponents and people looking for other people. Gabe and I currently share one desk. Because I am new, Gabe has a computer password, and I do not. This meant sitting on the couch, reading the entire Washington Post, front to back, and eating complimentary peanuts. We did a few more random jobs throughout the rest of the day, and I got to meet and talk with Mr. Chairman (which is one of two ways everyone addresses him, otherwise its "the boss" in third person). I also did the typical fetching of lunch and coffee, sealing and stuffing envelopes, and putting people on hold.
I was handed my job description today. I am basically a glorified secretary, and by glorified I do not mean by pay or pecking order in the world, but by being "there" when others cannot, and hearing "things" that may never be repeated. I knew this coming in, and am thankful for the experience, but would be lying if I said I am not going to enjoy what happens after work more than work itself.
As time progresses the work will increase, greatly. Talking with one of our press communicators, she said she has received 10 times as much contact because of both being in the Chairman's office and the approaching Farm Bill.
One big thing I learned today is the lingo of Washington, D.C. I was given many projects, which I have called errands all my life. Projects today included getting coffee, putting together packets and moving computer equipment. I always viewed a project as a 2 or 3 week work that took time and resources, but I'm happy to hear that I never have time to procrastinate and will not be graded.
Basically today was pretty low-key, but life is hard when you don't have "a place to sit." I re-learned how to sort mail and correlate newsletters, two great skills I have learned from my mother. But in my case it was only like 14 mailboxes, and 25 newsletters. I'll give it another try at 9 am tomorrow.
1/15/07
Day One at Ground Zero
It was an eventful weekend as Jamie and I traveled to and from Kansas City, MO from our Nicollet County homes in just over 45 hours. We left at 5 am on Friday for Alpha Gamma Rho Recruitment School, arrived noon Friday, and drove back starting at 7 pm on Saturday, making it home through an ice storm by 2 am Sunday, not advised, but here's what your car might look like if you do.
I arrived at MSP to find that we had been delayed "an hour and a half" by weather. This moved my departure time from 2:50 to 4:10, disappointing but manageable. One shutdown airport and a frozen valve later, I landed at Dulles five hours after I had originally expected at 1:00 am Eastern. The shutdown airport was New York's JFK, which has 0.0 visibility for four hours because of the fog. After we were finally boarded, we had to switch planes because one of the valves froze up because it was snowing so hard in Minneapolis. When we finally did take off at 8:00 pm (with 8:05 being our estimated time of arrival at Dulles) the flight went very smoothly and everything went as planned. Unfortunately, because I was so late the $13 bus I was going to take turned into a $60 taxi cab ride, but its over now, and I'm here and I like it.
My new landlord, Bill, was nice enough to wake up and meet me to let me in. He was very understanding and showed my my place, which is pretty nice for what I am paying, and I put everything away and went to bed. This is the beginning of my D.C. blogging, and hopefully not the end. I am going exploring today, camera in hand, and we will see what I find.
I arrived at MSP to find that we had been delayed "an hour and a half" by weather. This moved my departure time from 2:50 to 4:10, disappointing but manageable. One shutdown airport and a frozen valve later, I landed at Dulles five hours after I had originally expected at 1:00 am Eastern. The shutdown airport was New York's JFK, which has 0.0 visibility for four hours because of the fog. After we were finally boarded, we had to switch planes because one of the valves froze up because it was snowing so hard in Minneapolis. When we finally did take off at 8:00 pm (with 8:05 being our estimated time of arrival at Dulles) the flight went very smoothly and everything went as planned. Unfortunately, because I was so late the $13 bus I was going to take turned into a $60 taxi cab ride, but its over now, and I'm here and I like it.
My new landlord, Bill, was nice enough to wake up and meet me to let me in. He was very understanding and showed my my place, which is pretty nice for what I am paying, and I put everything away and went to bed. This is the beginning of my D.C. blogging, and hopefully not the end. I am going exploring today, camera in hand, and we will see what I find.
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