386 Chapter 11 | CongressTA B L E
11 .1Typical Workdays for a Congressional Representative
Members of Congress are generally busy from morning until late at night, both in Washington, D.C., and in their districts, attending
meetings and events. This is the actual schedule for Tammy Baldwin when she represented Wisconsin’s 2nd congressional district
in the House.Note: The authors would like to thank then-Representative Tammy Baldwin and her press secretary, Jerilyn Goodman, for sharing this information.
Ms. Goodman emphasized that there really isn’t a “typical day” for a member but said that these two days illustrate the workload. Baldwin was
elected to the U.S. Senate in 2012.In Washington, D.C. (votes scheduled throughout the day)
9:15–9:45 Office time
9:45–10:00 Caucus, Democratic members, Subcommittee on Energy and Environment on markup legislation
10:00–12:00 Markup H.R. 3276, H.R. 3258, H.R. 2868, Subcommittee on Energy and Environment
11:30–11:45 Step outside markup to meet with constituents on specifics of health care reform legislation
12:00–12:15 Travel to Department of Justice
12:15–1:15 Lunch with Attorney General Eric Holder
1:30–1:45 Meet with health care CEO on specifics of health care reform legislation
2:00–3:00 Meet with members who support single-payer health care amendment
3:00–4:30 Markup H.R. 3792, Subcommittee on Health
4:30–5:30 Office time
5:30–6:00 Caucus, Democratic members, Energy and Commerce Committee on financial services bill
6:00–6:30 Meet with legislative staff
6:30–7:00 Meet with chief of staff
7:00 –7:50 Office time
8:00–10:00 Dinner with chief of staff and political adviser
In the District
7:00 ET–8:00 CT Fly from Washington, D.C., to Madison, WI
8:15–10:30 Free time at home
10:30–10:40 Phone interview with area radio station on constituent survey, health care reform, and upcoming listening session
12:15–12:25 Travel to office
12:25–1:00 Office time, edit/sign correspondence
1:00–1:20 Travel to Madison West High School
1:30–1:55 Remarks at school plaza dedication ceremony
2:00–2:30 Travel to Stoughton, WI
2:45–5:00 Listening session (originally scheduled for one hour but continued until all present could speak)
5:00–5:40 Travel home
5:15–5:20 Phone interview with University of Wisconsin student radio station
6:15–6:45 Travel to Middleton, WI
7:00–8:00 Attend and give brief remarks at NAACP annual banquet
8:05–8:25 Travel homeFull_12_APT_64431_ch11_374-417.indd 386 16/11/18 10:30 AM