Saturday, June 27, 2009

All Good Things Must Come to an End...They Say

I just finished my final week in Congressman Steve King's office. I would certainly say it was an enjoyable week...but I also felt a little mechanical and robotic. Congress will be in recess next week for the 4th of July, and it was busy beyond expression. According to one source I heard there were over 1 million calls made to the House on Thursday alone and I can guarantee you that Friday was that much busier. The Senate has dealt largely with health care over the past few days/weeks (in addition to a credit card bill and the Sonia Sotomayor nomination). The House has been doing appropriations. However, late Thursday and all day Friday was consumed by one issue: cap and trade. Those million plus phone calls on Thursday (and million more, I'm sure, on Friday) were 99 percent devoted to people's thoughts on cap and trade. Considering my congressman's political party and personal thoughts on the issue, it's safe to say that all but a handful of calls to our office were in opposition to H.R. 2454, also known as the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACESA), cap and trade, cap and tax, or Waxman-Markey. Much of the mobilization to call members of congress was driven by the efforts of industry experts and the talk radio circuit. Talk radio played a pivotal role last summer in exposing and defeating comprehensive immigration reform. The only reason Waxman-Markey passed the House this time is because the House leadership feels they have the political capital to do so: a ready and willing president to sign the bill. However, prospects aren't looking so strong in the Senate. And even if an energy bill passes the Senate it will likely have to go to a conference committee so that differences between the House and Senate versions can be hammered out.

It was honestly very difficult for me to finish up work on Friday. I will really miss the people in the office; the atmosphere of the office and the House in general; and I will certainly miss being on the inside of the political process. I know I need to get back there...and I know in what capacity I need to do so. I just need the appropriate timing and opportunities to work themselves out.

It was a distinct honor to serve the people of the 5th District of Iowa. I will miss being there; I will miss life in DC. But I will take away so many great memories of the wonderful and unique experiences I was able to have during my short time in Washington. At the same time, I am really looking forward to getting home to the greatest state in the Union to see my family and friends and enjoy my last few weeks of summer.

Saturday, June 20, 2009

Meeting Mania: Summer of Service Week 1 and 2

These past two weeks of S.o.S. in the Center for Service Learning have been great. I have to admit that I was a bit nervous when I heard that our general objective was to create and present a workshop for about all of our community partners—so far we have counted about 102 of them! But, I am sure that our team, Anjum, Angie, Mary Gossett, and I (and with the guidance of gurus Amanda Reece and Savannah Atkins in Web 2.0 tools), we shall be victorious.
Our first meeting was last week Thursday, June 11th and it was very productive. Mary Gossett, whom I guess you can say is our coordinator for our project, got us started with our first assignment: The Community Partner Database! This database contains all of our community partners and our job is to update their profiles from phone number to academic interests. Thankfully, we just split up the 102 profiles between the three of us. I could not imagine doing all 102 Community Partners by myself!
This week, our Summer of Service meeting was held yesterday Friday, June 19th. I think this meeting was better than the last one! It was filled with heated debate, compromise, brainstorming and best of all, laughter. We got through finalizing workshop dates, specializing Community Partners to issue areas and even creating a basic outline of our workshops!
And although I am still a bit nervous about presenting our workshop, I am so excited about this experience and the numerous benefits I shall receive from this opportunity as a summer intern for the Center for Service Learning. Not only will I finally understand what Web 2.0 really means, but I will also partake in creating a stronger relationship between Stetson students and our community partners. As a result, community service will be more efficient and the opportunities for service will be readily available!

My (Belated) SLI Experience!

As I walked into the Hollis Center on June 3rd, 2009 at about 3pm, the Rinker Fieldhouse was filled with eager visitors collecting their items for room and board. Our SLI Summer Work Team had labored non-stop these past two weeks and our fingers were still numb from cutting out embellishments for the campus. Everyone I knew at this time was running around somewhere trying to get the final touches completed. At long last, we were about to begin the highlight our of mission …
The Summer Leadership Institute Conference was an opportunity for Bonner Leaders, Congressmen, Student Interns, and Administrators to come together for one purpose: growth in knowledge, interaction and camaraderie. My experience, however, was one that many of the attendants did not encounter.
Being on the SLI Summer work team was an experience like no other. As an SLI Coordinator for the Service Project Group and a member of the Social/Marketing group, I had achieved an understanding about how to handle various, last-minute conflicts that had frequently presented themselves to me. I had to overcome my challenges in event planning and efficiency in completing my responsibilities during times of high anxiety and stress. From making phone calls and researching for service opportunities to the numerous brainstorm and check-up meetings with each group, I had a great load on my shoulders! But, with the help of Mary Gossett, the team, and many very early mornings, we were able to succeed to the fullest measure. All of the service projects went wonderfully; the workshops were always on schedule and even the social events were a giant success! And despite our recurring worries about the success of the SLI Conference, in the end, we were worried for no reason.

Friday, June 19, 2009

Week 5

One week to go! How fast the time flies! This was a whirlwind week.

The House undertook its first of 12 appropriations bills. The appropriations process is pretty unbelievable. The Congress hasn't completed the full appropriations process since 1994. They typically complete the process by lumping bills together in packages called omnibus bills, or by way of continuing resolution. I'll save the technical details and let you Google them for yourself, but I'd be more than happy to elaborate on the process if you'd like.

This year's appropriations process is even more unbelievable because of the way the Democrats are closing the process. On the first appropriations bill--Science, Commerce, and Justice--the Democrats closed down the Rules process by essentially making it a modified open rule, which might as well be a closed rule. However, the appropriations process has historically always operated under open rule. This severely limits the ability of Republicans to reduce out of control spending, and the Democrats frame Republican efforts as a waste of time and colluding the process.

On a lighter note...A few days ago I gave a tour of the Capitol to the Polish Minister of Agriculture. On our way over to the Senate I ran into Senator John McCain and shared some pleasant words with him. It was a wonderful opportunity and something I won't soon forget.

Next week is my last week in the office. I'm not looking forward to leaving. But I have a lot to do in between now and then. I've been asked to give two speeches on the 4th of July about the future of freedom and liberty in America. It will be my first public political speech. I'm a little nervous, but nonetheless ready to launch a career. Wish me luck! Or pray for me if you believe in that God guy! Haha.

I hope the various journeys the rest of you are taking have been as meaningful and rewarding as mine.

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Week 4

Last Tuesday was probably one of the best days of my life. Every year several of my 8th grade teachers bring a group of students out to Washington DC to experience our nation's capital. I was able to meet with the class, talk to them about the current legislative calendar, the legislative process, what the congressman is up to, what it is like for a young kid from Iowa to live and work in DC, etc. It was a fantastic discussion, lots of good questions, and a great start to my day. Later that afternoon I had the good fortune of being able to meet Congressman Aaron Schock, a 27-year-old freshman from Peoria, Illinois. He brought me into his office, we had a wonderful conversation, and he was very encouraging of my future pursuits. Then, to top it off, I was able to get together with a babette Stetson alum for dinner. All in all, a great day and a great week. Today I volunteered my time to come into the office on the weekend, meet with a constituent, handle some issues, and give them a tour of the Capitol and surrounding area.

We've been having a lot of constituent correspondence on so many issues--some good, others not so good. But addressing constituent issue is the job of one's congressman and working in Steve King's office has taught me how to do that.

It's amazing that I'm down to just a few weeks left! I hope the next few are even better than this week.

Friday, June 5, 2009

Week 3

Another busy week on the Hill. Congress was back in session after a Memorial Day recess. And when C-Span turns on its cameras and the news shows have members of Congress as guests the calls and faxes and meetings and everything else gets much busier and more hectic. On Thursday I went out to NoVA (that's apparently local vernacular for "northern Virginia") for a conference/seminar which gave tips to many interns from across DC--how to manage money, how to take the next step in finding a job, how to handle yourself in the office. It was very practical and very useful. Another full week next week. I don't know what looks like for next week...busy I'm sure. My aunt and uncle are in town this weekend so I plan on spending tomorrow with them in the city. Three weeks and a few days left!