This was my first thought after an unusual day (someone shot at the former president) followed by the usual Beltway response. It’s complicated by the RNC’s shindig this week. I thought we might give regular people in Washington, D.C. a vacation anywhere outside the city, and lock up as “inmates” all the politicians without cell phones, computers or television. Leave them there for a. week without allowing any news in or out. They’d probably kill each other, which might not be a bad thing, but it wouldn’t achieve the goal I hoped would ensue.
So, scratch that idea. Let’s give the real residents of D.C. a break. How? By giving every member of Congress a paid two-week vacation, starting the Monday after Labor Day. There’ll be four piles of names for each Sen./Rep., with each pile filled with the names of a constituent who’s solidly middle class and one at the poverty line, one for an individual registered to vote in the Republican or Democratic parties. For example, they get to spend a week with a poor Republican family, another with a middle class Democratic family in their own district.
The aim is to get them out of the Beltway and back home where they can really listen to their constituents and learn how much broccoli really costs or how to scrimp and save to send Susie to college. No staff, no cell phones, no meetings. Just Monday to Friday, for two weeks, with families from different political persuasions. Chosen randomly from a hat, so to speak.
There will be no political fund raising, or getting in front of the next news cycle to beat the “enemy.” During that time, the news media will volunteer to stop reporting anything from inside the Beltway and will instead take on assignments to tackle the issues of concern to everyday American families. Perhaps they can call it “hopes and dreams” or even “hopes and fears.” Just have everyone get off the hamster wheel and remember why they were elected/hired to begin with. The exercise will begin with everyone (including host families) getting a mini-copy of the United States Constitution as a reminder of who we are and who we hope to be when we grow up. It’ll provide good dinner table conversation, I hope.
Perhaps these representatives of the people will remember when they were young and running for office to make a difference in the lives of Americans, to work toward a brighter future for all. No, I haven’t smoked any wacky tabacky and yes, I am an eternal optimist. This is what happens when I believe the people who have the power we’ve entrusted them with to represent us, forget why they’re doing what they’re doing. We live in a land of opportunity, with a flawed but democratic system in place for self-governance. I believe the answer is not to burn it all down, but to go back to basics and remember why we’re all here. We’re all in this melting pot together, and we need to be able to live our best lives without ruining the lives of others in the process. It’s not a zero sum game, folks. Happy Sunday, voter! Dee
Cooking with Dee 