Working on Capitol Hill is not what it once was. I remember a day when there was at minimum a pretense of cordiality, and on our best days we actually respected each other as human beings.
Now?
Conservatives have to fend off daily verbal assaults from the Establishment of both parties in the legacy and ankle-biter leftist media as well as from Members. Of Congress. Imagine being on the receiving end of that non-stop sort of barrage in the workplace. It is intended to cower and intimidate. It doesn't. It only works on the spineless which doesn't usually encompass the conservative set.
Don’t get me wrong from the outset here. I am grateful to God to have a job in America today in the wake of Communist China’s assault on the free world with the Wuhan Virus and the subsequent job killing government shutdowns. I have seen some truly selfless acts of sacrifice from co-workers and Members over the past year of horrors. I have also seen the power hungry using this crisis to empower themselves.
Sadly, the majority of our elected representatives in Washington on both sides of the aisle put their own personal best interests first, not those of their constituents. Of course, they hire the requisite staff to provide the functionary help to constituents with problems they may have such as getting their Medicare benefits or navigating the Veterans Administration, the IRS or even appointments to the service academies. The problem arises when they equate the success of the country with their own personal success, power and wealth.
Many come to Washington, DC, riding their first federal election win, and soon lose sight of what public service is meant to be. The corruption is usually evident by comparing the size of their personal wealth when they first got elected to Congress to the amount of their personal net worth today (and/or their spouse and immediate family members). Not in every case but usually.
What is even more damaging to America's experiment in self-governance is that this electoral enlightenment usually comes along with voting for things that will enrich them in some way be it personally or to their reelection war chests. They become the self-proclaimed (and indulgent) “Ruling Class” and believe that they know what's best for their constituents whether those they represent agree or not.
This toxic mix of self-interest is killing this country. My endeavor here is to occasionally give the reader a glimpse of my view from the inside. When I can. And see what happens.