It was a slow day, but we finally released the hearing that I have been doing a little work with, one on Animal Welfare. It's pretty controversial, but I think almost everyone will be happy after the hearing is over. I have paged through the testimony, and it was what I would expect. This could be quite the hearing, we'll see.
Also today we were briefed on both Animal Welfare and the USDA Checkoff programs. The Congressional Research Service does a really good job of providing both sides of these things.
After work I was invited to my best meeting ever, a one-on-one with a high-up person at USDA. I am not going to release the name just for privacy reasons (and because I would show up on Google Alerts more than I already do).. but in summary I was able to have a full hour with one of the most knowledgeable people I could possibly have access to. I thought it would be a 15-minute meet and greet, but after 20 minutes of talking, he simply asked, "Well, what else would you like to know?" So during the rest of the time I just tried to dig as deep as I could to get questions that I just always wondered about. I leave for New York at 3:00 am, so I'm just going to stay up. I have simply 2 weeks left, plus a weekend and a Monday for site-seeing. We're actually STILL moving stuff in, which is what our other intern got stuck doing all day. I've had my own days, and I'm honestly scared about the week where I will be the only intern, and we will not be having hearings (as we will be gathering the information from all the previous hearings and begin to formulate our mark-up, or at least thats my perception between what I have been told and what I have seen). Have a good weekend!
5/4/07
5/3/07
Still doing homework
I missed out on yesterday because my Internet connection was being crappy. Today I have some homework due at tomorrow midnight central time, so I'm going to try and do it tonight because me and a friend are going to New York for the weekend via Amtrak. We plan on seeing the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, Empire State Building, World Trade Center Site, Times Square, Chinatown, and attend a Yankee's game among other things. Please let me know if you have some suggestions of places I NEED to get to in two long days (6 am Saturday to 11 pm Sunday) or things within the places I've listed that I may want to check out (i.e. Times Square).
Since I'm trying to get to work, I'm going to give only a short summary of yesterday and today:
Wednesday
We had a hearing on the USDA's leak of social security numbers on its website, tech people from all over the district showed up. I didn't hear much, but I guess it was a big deal that was in the news. Other than that we started work on our hearings next week.
Today there was not much going on, the Iraq bill is still in conference, which leaves our Ag. disaster aid hanging in the air. I'm not really sure if we're going to be stripped out of the bill and have to find some other means or if the bill can pass, as is, with only the troop pull-out deadline removed. In our office there wasn't much going on besides paper work as we prepared for next week. Actually I did a lot of work in the Congressional Records, which I will talk about more tomorrow if I remember.
Since I'm trying to get to work, I'm going to give only a short summary of yesterday and today:
Wednesday
We had a hearing on the USDA's leak of social security numbers on its website, tech people from all over the district showed up. I didn't hear much, but I guess it was a big deal that was in the news. Other than that we started work on our hearings next week.
Today there was not much going on, the Iraq bill is still in conference, which leaves our Ag. disaster aid hanging in the air. I'm not really sure if we're going to be stripped out of the bill and have to find some other means or if the bill can pass, as is, with only the troop pull-out deadline removed. In our office there wasn't much going on besides paper work as we prepared for next week. Actually I did a lot of work in the Congressional Records, which I will talk about more tomorrow if I remember.
5/1/07
Pie in the Sky
We all worked double duty for our two-hearing day. The crowds were small enough that I could work on other projects, so I did not get to hear much of the information. The hearing on Crop Insurance started at 10:00 am and was over just after noon. We started up again at 1:00 with a hearing about Rural Broadband (or the lack thereof) and the digital divide. One of my projects included helping to formulate this press release, which was released at about 6 pm tonight. The other project was my continual wading through the pool of Farm Bill proposals. This time we eliminated a few, giving me a better idea of what it was going to look like. I was out of the office by 6:30, as I had an award-winning reception to attend.
Okay, so there are no reception awards, but hill dwellers working long hours do know what good food tastes like, and pie is good food. After being ridiculed at Easter by my Uncle, I suggested that I would tone down the comments what I eat. But, tonight's reception has topped them all, a pie reception, with over 15 different kinds of pie, along with food and refreshments. It was put on by a trucking association, maybe because truckers are as American as pie? I'm not sure, but I'm glad they did. One note about these receptions is that you really don't have to be invited to the majority of them. The organizations just like the publicity and awareness, but usually have some sort of tie into their product (i.e. National Cattleman's Beef and Outback Steakhouse teaming up), but I guess truckers truck just about everything. I was not invited, but a good reception can be a packed party in minutes as staffers get on their Blackberries to let their friends know about the good eats.
We have a full committee hearing tomorrow on a subject I am not to familiar with, the release of Social Security numbers and the USDA's information systems. I'm not certain if there was a mistake in the past or if a problem is on the horizon, but that's why hearings are open to the public. I'll find out tomorrow and fill you in.
Speaking of filling in, I had a lot of pie. But don't worry, I didn't eat any real food so I'm not that full.
Okay, so there are no reception awards, but hill dwellers working long hours do know what good food tastes like, and pie is good food. After being ridiculed at Easter by my Uncle, I suggested that I would tone down the comments what I eat. But, tonight's reception has topped them all, a pie reception, with over 15 different kinds of pie, along with food and refreshments. It was put on by a trucking association, maybe because truckers are as American as pie? I'm not sure, but I'm glad they did. One note about these receptions is that you really don't have to be invited to the majority of them. The organizations just like the publicity and awareness, but usually have some sort of tie into their product (i.e. National Cattleman's Beef and Outback Steakhouse teaming up), but I guess truckers truck just about everything. I was not invited, but a good reception can be a packed party in minutes as staffers get on their Blackberries to let their friends know about the good eats.
We have a full committee hearing tomorrow on a subject I am not to familiar with, the release of Social Security numbers and the USDA's information systems. I'm not certain if there was a mistake in the past or if a problem is on the horizon, but that's why hearings are open to the public. I'll find out tomorrow and fill you in.
Speaking of filling in, I had a lot of pie. But don't worry, I didn't eat any real food so I'm not that full.
4/30/07
Top of the World
This week we started with a packed field of four hearings, but this Thursday's was postponed. We now sit with a packed field of three hearings. We have two tomorrow and a full committee hearing on Wednesday. Thursday's hearing was also supposed to be for the full committee. The interns were given the duty of writing the press releases for each of tomorrow's hearings. Although they are close to the same every time as far as what they discuss and how uncontroversial they are, it is nice to have something "official" that can be shown as my own work.
On the hill today there were no votes as Members of Congress attended the funeral of Juanita Millender-McDonald, CA, who died last Sunday. While this is the second death among Members of Congress in my short tenure here, it is interesting that work goes on. Letters are written to the office addressed to Vacancy, instead of the members name, followed by the state and district. The staff there still stays on full-time trying to meet with constituents and work with other Members to get their views heard. But, the office itself does not have a vote on the floor until a successor is appointed.
Because of the limited business on the floor, we were able to swiftly complete our setup for our hearings tomorrow morning and tomorrow afternoon.
In other news, the Historic Eastern Market building burned this morning, and I doubt it will be back in business before I leave. I was able to eat there a few times, and even take my family once, for the famous buckwheat pancakes for breakfast. It is an open market frequented by Members of Congress, Senators, and of course their staff as a good place for breakfast or fresh goods.
This weekend my girlfriend came to visit, but she was hard to impress as she had been here only a few years ago. We hit the highlights and I got my first view from the top of Washington Monument, a place my grandpa said he had climbed with a friend over a half century ago. The steps are shut down for climbing on the way up, but the elevator is a nice 5 minute ride to the top.
On the hill today there were no votes as Members of Congress attended the funeral of Juanita Millender-McDonald, CA, who died last Sunday. While this is the second death among Members of Congress in my short tenure here, it is interesting that work goes on. Letters are written to the office addressed to Vacancy, instead of the members name, followed by the state and district. The staff there still stays on full-time trying to meet with constituents and work with other Members to get their views heard. But, the office itself does not have a vote on the floor until a successor is appointed.
Because of the limited business on the floor, we were able to swiftly complete our setup for our hearings tomorrow morning and tomorrow afternoon.
In other news, the Historic Eastern Market building burned this morning, and I doubt it will be back in business before I leave. I was able to eat there a few times, and even take my family once, for the famous buckwheat pancakes for breakfast. It is an open market frequented by Members of Congress, Senators, and of course their staff as a good place for breakfast or fresh goods.
This weekend my girlfriend came to visit, but she was hard to impress as she had been here only a few years ago. We hit the highlights and I got my first view from the top of Washington Monument, a place my grandpa said he had climbed with a friend over a half century ago. The steps are shut down for climbing on the way up, but the elevator is a nice 5 minute ride to the top.
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