USA TODAY International Edition
Pushups no help as freshmen seek office space
All won their elections; not all can win the lottery
– The size. The lighting. The proximity to Dunkin’ Donuts.
The devil was in the details for Congress’ new freshmen, who – after months of campaigning and raising money, then days of orientation – had to rely on Lady Luck for their new House office space.
One by one, new members were called up Friday to pick a white-andblack button out of a small mahogany box in the Rayburn House Office Building. The lighthearted lottery tradition gives all incoming lawmakers a fair chance of choosing an office.
The buttons were numbered from 1 to 85. The lower the number picked, the better the chance of choosing prime space.
Colin Allred, a Democrat from Texas, was the first to pull a number. He pulled out No. 4.
“I used my lucky rock,” he said as he dug it from his left pants pocket. “This is like something to keep myself centered. It’s not really lucky. I decided it’s lucky. It worked today ... Any office here will be better than my campaign office.”
There were some tense moments as members drew their buttons, wiping away the hopes of other waiting freshmen. Like coaches during an NFL draft, members furiously scribbled on lined notebooks. Several of them sighed.
Denver Riggleman, a Republican from Virginia, calmed down only after being assured No. 14 was a safe pick.
“I’m good, “he joked returning to his seat. “I was panicking.”
Some freshmen danced on their way up to the box. Others had their spouses pick or said a prayer in hopes that a higher power could help.
U.S. Rep-elect Sharice Davids, a former mixed martial arts fighter, ripped off her black blazer, flexed her muscles and did a handful of pushups before picking her number. The roars from her colleagues in the crowded room didn’t seem to help, though.
“Don’t do pushups,” the Kansas Democrat said as her number, 65, was read aloud to the room.
Ben Cline, R-Va., nabbed the first choice after picking No. 1. Republican Mark Green picked No. 85. Green said he has a history of picking the last number for offices in the Tennessee legislature, so he wasn’t surprised.
“I rode into the invasion of Iraq with a tier one unit as a night stalker,” he said as he waited for the 84 ahead of him to select. “There are not accommodations they can give that are harder than that in my service to country.”
No matter the pick, Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., said it was a privilege just to serve in Congress.
Still, she held out hope she could get the office of the late Rep. Shirley Chisholm, D-N.Y., the first black woman elected to Congress, in 1968. The fact that Friday was Chisholm’s birthday made it even more meaningful – Pressley also made history as the first African-American woman to represent Massachusetts in Congress.
Alas, her dream didn’t come true. “It did break my heart,” said Pressley. “I don’t usually put all my eggs in one basket … In this instance, I really did have my full heart set on that. We went to the office today. I did feel this immediate sort of soul tie and kinship to the space.”
Katie Porter said even before the drawing she knew she’d choose an office close to the Dunkin’ Donuts, an eatery hard to find in California, but she was also excited to see the freshmen supporting one another.
“There was just so much camaraderie and even bipartisanship,” said the California Democrat, who thanked her lucky red flats for pulling No. 5 from the box.
After choosing their numbers, lawmakers rushed to scout out space in the office buildings flanking the Capitol. Desks, chairs and other furniture lined the halls as retiring and ousted members prepared to move out.
U.S. Rep.-elect Dan Crenshaw, RTexas, navigated the halls, but kept running into lawmakers who had lower numbers.
“That one was great, but all these guys with lower numbers liked it too,” he said with a frown as his colleagues filed into a first-floor office.
Dan Meuser, R-Pa., followed his staff as they guided him to several offices.
“As long as my constituents know how to find my office, and I know how to find my office, I think we’ll be happy,” he said, adding that comfort is one of his priorities, but “a nice view doesn’t hurt.”
Meanwhile, Rep.-elect Michael Guest, R-Miss., and his chief of staff, Jordan Downs, holed up in the office of retiring Rep. Gregg Harper, R-Miss., poring over floor plans of other suites.
Guest knew his planning might not matter. He had picked No. 75. “We were just glad we weren’t 85,” he said.