Posted by
Patrick Henry on Thursday, August 19, 2010 6:10:10 AM
So you're running for congress and enjoying a double-digit lead in the polls. While
it's a bit too early to count your chickens, it is not premature to begin thinking about
how you will comport yourself once inside the beltway, should voters honor you as
their elected representative. Following is some advice designed to shield you from
some of the contempt in which the current congress is held by Americans.
Remember who you work for. It isn't the party bosses, lobbyists, labor unions
or even the president. None of them elected you. The voters back home did, and
they can un-elect you just as fast if you forget that the seat to which you've been
elevated is theirs, not yours. The bills you sponsor and the votes you cast must
honor the priorities of your constituents first if you want to stay in Washington and
be well regarded by folks back home.
Think lots, speak little. From the time you arrive in Washington you will be
surrounded by members of the press corps seeking juicy quotes. Many a promisng
political career has been undone at the outset by uninformed, imprudent or
insensitive gaffes made by those who talked first and thought later. Reporters don't
care one whit about you OR your constituents. They don't even care about what's
true. All they're looking for is a juicy story. It will be in your interest to abide by the
old maxim that it is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open
your mouth and remove all doubt. It is best to be regarded as the most prudent
and thoughful congressman or woman, than the most quotable. Speak only when
you have something really important to say, and in circumstances and venues
over which you have some control. If you are misunderstood or misquoted, demand
immediate correction and/or retraction. People will notice.
Never stop listening. The capitol is littered with the symbolic political tombstones
of those who, once in office, turned a deaf ear to constituents, their priorities and
concerns. You will need to set up mechanisms to keep tabs on thoughts of those who
voted for you, or might in the future vote for you, both while you're in Washington and
back home. Hire competent, sensitive staff, and make sure they understand that getting
constant and accurate feedback from constituents is your highest priority and that if
they ignore, misconstrue, misrepresent or disrespect that in any way, they are out.
Make lots of friends, and watch your back. If that sounds conflicted it is because
political alliances are a different breed of cat. They are, for the most part, marriages
of convenience. You cannot assume that a colleague who supported you on one issue
won't turn against you on another. Every colleague has his or her own agenda, driven
by what their constituents want, their own party loyalty or lack thereof and their own
indebtedness to various lobbies and campaign donors. Don't assume that any of those
are necessarily in synch with yours. Seeking allies who share regional interests,
common problems and common values is safest. But betraying constituent interests
for any fleeting alliance is the unforgiveable political sin, as many are finding out to
their dismay this election season.
Balance principle with pragmatism. You will arive in Washington wanting to fix
what's broken and change the world all at once. You can't. At least not alone, and not
immediately. Understand that while compromise is the nature of politics, it must be
contained to process and fine detail, never principle. Politicians who compromise
the principles on which they campaigned quickly become like hookers who were only
going to "do it this one time." Before long there is no real question about what they
are, just about what they charge. When your actions, words and votes no longer
reflect what you promised in your campaign, voters back home will lose track of who
you are. When that happens it's no longer a matter of whether you're finished, but
when. If, in light of realities on the ground in Washington, you need to backtrack on
a promise or an issue, be honest enough to tell your constituency about the change
in your thinking, and the reasons behind it. They trusted you. Now it's time for you
to trust them. If you can't get everything they want or need right now, and have to
settle for something less, tell them why you settled and what your plans are for
moving the discussion forward. They know you can't work miracles. But they have
a right to your honest best effort.
Choose to be a leader. You were elected because you have certain areas of
expertise or strength, and someone thought you had good ideas. Don't sit on them
once you get to Washington, a place starved for change and innovation. Get them
out there in a clear, understandable, forceful manner. Be prepared for others to
try to shoot them down, whether for political or substantive reasons. But that's a
part of what you bargained for when you ran for office. Be sure of your ground
and stick to your guns. God hates a coward, and so do voters. Only those who
take defensible ground and persevere through the hail of criticism emerge as true
leaders. You weren't elected to follow the herd. So don't.
Keep it clean. Little corruptions or compromises on principle, careless over-
sights and a sense of entitlement can easily make you another Trafficante, Rangel,
Rostenkowski, Cunningham, Jefferson or Maxine Waters. Election is an invitation
to corruption and disgrace. If you want a distinguished legislative career and not one
that ends in disillusionment and disgrace, you need to take care of business. Pay
your taxes, in full and on time. Don't take gifts from lobbyists, including trips, meals
or other "perqs." Beware of friends seeking favors. One government employee told
me that her boss's advice was not to be associated with anything or anyone you
wouldn't be comfortable being seen with on tomorrow's front page. That's good advice.
When constituents believe you are using elected office for personal gain, you are in
deep, deep trouble. You're the only one who can control the perception, and you do
it by keeping the reality out of the gutter.
Know when enough is enough. See your election as a rare and time-limted
opportunity. not a lifetime career. Congress may never have the discipline to
self-impose term limits. But individual congressmen who have become too deeply
enmeshed in the machine, too jaded to care, too out-of-touch with what's really
going on back home and bone weary of the political grind can always choose to
use their political experience as a springboard to what's next rather than an early
retirement home for those having lost their effectiveness, passion and purpose.
Honest and ongoing self-evaluation and a rejection of the "once in congress, always
in congress" myth is not just a place to end. It's an assumption with which to begin.
If you heed advice like the forgoing, who knows? You may just change the world.
And you may prove the best friend your state and district's voters ever had. That's
the truest honor of politics!