I Fly to See My Friends Who Give Me Home Base

 

U.S. House of Representatives convene in Washington.

Senator John Kerry received a wide media attention back in the 2004 presidential race as a Democratic nominee.  However, the negative attention marred his candidacy and the culprit falls to this man:  Rick Reed, a Republican who spattered a disservice to Kerry’s reputation.  Kerry lost his potential voters.  Kerry’s record as a commander in Vietnam War showed up as false and his lying about his patriotic service led to lost votes and support from his country.

 

One thing was certain:  Reed was not his friend.  That is one of the politics in Washington.  Know who your friends are.  The recent 2022 Republicans’ sweeping votes across the local and states primaries showed friends or allies supporting each other.  Donald Trump’s allies backed one another.  So did former president Bill Clinton.  They showed support for a fellow member of their party.  Though friends in your affiliated party are important, House members have far more important friends at home.

 

House members have to win the support of his friends at home.  Members service their districts also known as constituents.  They service their districts by giving them “district service” or “constituent service” with these core activities:  provide help to individuals, groups, and localities pitted against the government. 

 

House member’s behavior in Congress is observed.  How a member’s constituency observes them affect their committee work, voting record, influence, and allegiances.  A House member’s behavior in Congress determines their political support at home. 

 

Representatives seek support from their constituencies.  Members of Congress’s primary goal is to get nominated, elected, re-nominated, and re-elected.  Their electoral goal is not achieved in Washington but at home. 

 

House members do many things in Washington but they get their electoral support at home.  Their behavior in Washington is a bid for their constituents’ support.  But House members also work to keep and enlarge their political support at home by going to the districts.  They do things at the district.

 

What they do at home is not too different from what they do in Washington to win support.  The members’ times spent outside of Washington do not count.  All of their time spent is spent in Washington—committees, House floor, research, helping constituents with their problems.  But a dozen of members go home every other week for about 3 ¹/₂ days.  Nearly ¹/₃ of members go home every single weekend.            

 

Congress members hone their own home style.  Their home style is grave to his electoral goal.  How much should I allocate activities at home?  House members decide between his needs at home and needs at Washington.  The resources allocated at the district concern their time and staff.  How much time should be physically spent in the district?  How much staff should be placed in the district?  Their decisions sometimes lead to trade-offs between home and Washington.  When he is at home, he gives up some things in Washington. 

 

The representative’s office carries ancillary resources—staff, office space, office expense allowances, free mailing privileges, personal expense accounts.  Congressman decides how to use the resources. 

 

Staff is the most serious part of the resources.  If appointing staff ranks first, then how the staff is distributed between Washington and the district comes next. 

 

Why do some members go home often and some less so?  Low visits are less than 24 visits; medium is 24-42 visits; high visits are greater than 42.  One theory is that representatives whose seats are secured may not visit their home as much.  But the number of trips home does not necessarily increase as the electoral margin lessens. 

 

Electoral safety can be a valid argument.  Members who have been in office longer spend less time at home.  Increase seniority comes with added responsibility and influence in the House raising the need to spend more time in Washington. 

 

As terms of service increase, the number of trips home reduces.  Congressional longevity is likely a time allocation decision.  Congressional newcomers work for their electoral goal.  Representatives with family at home also fall in the high-trip category. 

 

The allocated resources show a pattern throughout our continental regions (except in the Midwest).  The East shows high frequency of home visits and larger district staff.  The West shows low frequency of home visits.  The Southern and border regions show small district staffs.  The welfare-social services case load may be larger in the urbanized locales. 

 

Politicians talk before their audiences to draw their support.  Verbal and non-verbal impressions are made on their constituents.  The House members believe that a great deal of support is won by the kind of self they present to others.  They present themselves in a way that draws forth the constituent’s supports.  (Former president Barack Obama uttered verbatim that moved his supporters; late president John F. Kennedy won his votes with his impeccably "dressed-for-success" non-verbal image before televised audiences.)

 

The House members say if the people like and trust you, they will often vote for you.  Trust is major in a representative-constituent relationship.  Gaining constituencies’ trust takes a great deal of time to build and maintain.  House members may go home often to present themselves to build trust which often takes time.  Presenting yourself takes time.

 

Representatives show they are qualified, identify, and understand their constituents.  (Most reps have background in law or business.)  “I am one of you,” “I am like you,” are how they identify with their constituents.  They present themselves in a way that they understand them.  “I see the world like you do,” the representatives try to build an understanding between themselves and to whom they serve. 

 

Congress members know who their supporters are.  The representatives’ supporters differ based on their issue positions and home styles.  “My strongest supporters are the people who know me and whom I have known and with whom I have communicated over the years.”  They observe not the demographics but their personal contacts. 

 

Sometimes congressmen do not feel at home.  They may consider the time cost and political benefits instead.  “I don’t spend that much time there . . . But I can get 50% of the vote without campaigning there at all, and I couldn’t get more than 75% if I campaigned there all the time.  If I did that, I would probably lose more votes than gained because I would become identified with one of the factions and half the people would hate me.”

 

This particular congressman’s home style is not a right fit with his county.  Other representatives may visit his district simply for speech engagements.  Some representatives may have rural conservatives vote for him which hinges on a single industry.  Others may have rural, suburban, or urban components.  Kerry suffered his suburban voters.  Some favor workers in the manufacturing engineering—data processing and other sophisticates.  But when they have found their friends, they have found the people who uphold their home.  Politics can be personal.