Congress Doesn't Get Anything Done But Still Complains About Overwork

Congress has done a whole lot of nothing since the Dems took over in January. That's not necessarily a bad thing since most of their efforts result in costs to Americans. For instance, right now the House is tied up in knots over the issue of the Turkish genocide of Armenians which occurred over 90 years ago. Now there's a vital national interest.

It looks like Nancy Pelosi's 5-day work plan, which was supposed to result in productivity, is quickly losing favor with the House members:

Rank-and-file members of Congress are grumbling about the five-day workweek instituted this year by House Democratic leaders, complaining that it leaves little time for campaigning and allows few weekdays to deal with business back home.

“We have a long list of meetings that can’t be scheduled because I’m never back in the district,” said freshman Rep. Jason Altmire (D-Pa.). “Part of it is related to the campaign, and part is simply doing my job back at home.” ...

With that longer schedule, though, lawmakers often have only the weekend to spend back in their districts. For those with long commutes, it can be even less. And for freshman members, it’s a particularly sensitive issue because the first reelection fight tends to be the most difficult.

Earlier in the year, few Democrats complained about the schedule. They had just won back the majority and were eager to enact their campaign promises to clean up Congress, raise the minimum wage, make student loans more affordable and implement the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission.

But now that those tasks have been completed, many lawmakers are longing to spend time at home talking to voters and beginning to campaign for reelection.

Another article describes how Pelosi has meetings to determine the agendas of the next two meetings, which often results in meetings in which nothing actually gets done. It's bureaucracy at its finest.