Internship Journal #9

Last modified on: 10/6/2007, 5:36 PM

Yea, yea, yea, I know…I said I would write more often, but sometimes I have a real problem wanting to write. You know…kinda like writer's block! So, I have been worried about what to write, because according to my office here in D.C. I can have a blog, but I cannot discuss my office. So, suffice it to say that I got the office I wanted…for those of you out there that I told who I wanted to work for while I was here in D.C.

On our first full day in D.C. my friends Brandon, Diana, and I went into D.C. on the Metro rail, so that we could time the ride in and find our office buildings. My office is in the Cannon House Office Building and I am happy about that, because it is the oldest of the House Office Buildings and it is also the closest to the Metro station. We had a wonderful time in D.C. that day, Brandon frolicked on the lawn of the Capitol and we herded geese into the reflection pool. I rode on a carousel and we saw adults playing kickball on the Mall.

We saw the Washington Monument (but we couldn't get tickets to go to the top, but we will eventually) and World War II Memorial and my favorite part of the day was the Lincoln Memorial where I shed several tears. I cried because Lincoln was so important to this country and being from a southern state it was even more touching for me, because I could be a citizen of an entirely different country if not for Abraham Lincoln.

I arrived in my office on Monday morning at 10:00a.m. and my intern coordinator was out sick. I was shown around by our staff assistant and taught how to sort mail and faxes. I was sent to the office of John Doolittle to take a tour of the Capitol. WOW!!! What beautiful building. I will tell more about this after I take some pics inside. I did find it interesting that there are statues of Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States of America and General Robert E. Lee, Commander of the Confederate Army. There is a picture of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in which Thomas Jefferson is standing on John Adams foot!! Jefferson and Adams were arch rivals and died on the same day, interestingly enough it was on July 4th. We went into the gallery of the House of Representatives and that was exciting to actually be there listening to debate on the floor. On Friday, of my first week, the House was not in session and I had the opportunity to sit in a seat on the floor!!! (Did I mention that I saw the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi on two occasions?) I spent most of my first week sorting mail and faxes; and trying to learn how to answer the phones…gggrrrrr…by Tuesday of my second week, I had the phones down pat.

Wednesday of my second week, I attended my first committee meeting…a very long committee meeting about the FDA regulation of tobacco products. The legislation is sponsored by Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Nathan Deal (R-GA). Nathan Deal was my congressman when I lived in Georgia. When I lived in Georgia, I was the Governmental Affairs Program Manager for the Georgia Jaycees and the coordinator for the Model Legislature held each year and I invited Nathan Deal to speak to us during the legislative session. He did come and the other day, after the committee meeting I went and introduced myself and told him that the model legislative sessions and meeting him were the main reasons I decided to become a Political Scientist and why I applied for this internship. He was happy that I came and spoke to him and that made me proud of all I have accomplished, since the time I was a Jaycee.

The Legislative Aid that deals with Healthcare issues is very kind to me and she gave me info regarding a luncheon briefing on Wednesday. This briefing is about Children's Mental Health issues, a great concern for me personally, because of the illness of my daughter Jaymi. Senator Kennedy should be in attendance for this meeting, I hope so. I will also attend a luncheon briefing on Tuesday regarding Mental Health issues, as well.

So, let me tell you about the showdown on the hill these days. The House and Senate have both passed the SCHIP Bill, the State Children's Health Insurance Program and the President has now vetoed it. At this point neither chamber has enough votes to override the President's veto, but from what I have read in Roll Call and heard around the hill, they both just might get to the numbers they need to override the veto. The House will need 196 votes which is 2/3 of the Congress and the Senate has the 67 votes they need to override the President's veto. The consensus regarding this bill is growing among all sides and the republicans are likely to fall in line with the democrats on this issue, because few of them want to be seen as not helping children. I can tell you all that their have been many phone calls, faxes, and mail have come into all the offices on the hill wanting the Congress to override the veto. If they do, in my opinion, the republicans may have a better chance at holding on to some of their congressional seats next November. We shall see!

I spent the day today in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia and it was beautiful…I will write more about my weekend tomorrow, because I am going with Kari to Mount Vernon tomorrow and I want to include some pics from today and tomorrow at the same time and this posting is long.

Oh, I forgot to tell you all that I got a room to myself and I am VERY HAPPY about this…not that I don't want a roommate, but…well I am old and stuck in my ways and it is just much better for everyone this way!!!

Until next time,

Eliza

P.S. Did I mention that I met Astronauts the other day??? More on that later!!