Monday, June 27, 2016
By:
This week was a roller coaster of busy schedules and deadlock within the House of Representatives and it ended up also containing several very large changes of pace for me. As we near the end of session for congress, many hearings on crucial topics are being held and with little time left, the pressure is on to get a bulletproof plan going in to each hearing.
Just because the pressure is rising though, does not mean it is all grinding work with no fun. On Monday afternoon I was able to give a tour to my cousin and her boyfriend. It may have been the worst tour in history, but I was glad to have done it none the less. It has become clear to me I really need to take some time when I get the chance to become trained in tours as I had no clue what I was allowed to show my family and what I wasn’t. I have since found out I can show most of anything with my Intern badge. So now my next step is to learn the things myself so I can show them off at the end of summer when my girlfriend comes for a lovely little vacation in DC.
Now back to the hearing I mentioned… It really showed me how difficult it can be for politicians to prioritize issues as no matter what happens, the world keeps moving and they must all make hard choices to push certain issues and miss opportunities for others. During a hearing with the EPA this week which was focused on determining ensuring sound science is used and appropriate regulations are enacted, many Democrat members were unable to attend due to the Sit-In that began on Wednesday. I know that this hearing was one of great importance to the Democratic members but the goal of their Sit-In was to make a large change in gun regulation and nothing but solidarity within the party and strong acts would give their purpose the firepower it needed to pass.
Something I had been looking forward to since I arrived was the Congressional Baseball Game. Once a year, Democrats and Republicans square off in America's favorite pastime. One would think a bunch of congress people would not be the best ball players but they all did surprisingly well! After the many years this has been a tradition the Democrats had the lead 39-38-1. Republicans however, did not have losing on their mind this time and where the Democrats broke the tie last year, the Republicans brought the tie back with a 7th inning comeback for the win. It was a great game and I hope to be able to see another one in my lifetime!!
At the end to this hectic week I took some much needed exploring time and went to see the Air and Space Museum as well as the founding documents in the National Archive. It was so fascinating to see the founding documents and to see the age in them. The ink was very faded in some areas and quite clear in others and the script is incredibly delicate in many instances. I think it is hugely important to see the documents that built this nation we live in and was very fortunate to have finally had the chance. I do believe I will head in again to see them on a weekday when the crowds are not quite so heavy. Who knows, maybe I’ll attend a Gala there one day and “borrow” the Declaration of Independence in order to save it from other people trying to steal it for nefarious treasure hunting reasons.
Demitri Call