Congress Ditches the Five-Day Workweek

When Democrats seized the majority in Congress, the world turned upside down. One of the big changes instituted was a requirement that the House actually work five days each week. As the Washington Post reported:

Hoyer and other Democratic leaders say they are trying to repair the image of Congress, which was so anemic this year it could not meet a basic duty: to approve spending bills that fund government. By the time the gavel comes down on the 109th Congress on Friday, members will have worked a total of 103 days. That’s seven days fewer than the infamous “Do-Nothing Congress” of 1948.

Well, it hasn’t turned out all that well. The House and Senate are still unable to pass the basic appropriations bills to fund the government–more than two months after the start of the new fiscal year. And now, House Democrats have decided not only to ditch the five-day work week for the year ahead, but to actually work fewer days than normal. According to Roll Call:

House Democrats have circulated a draft 2008 legislative calendar and vote schedule, reflecting a somewhat lighter workload that is traditional in an election year… According to the draft, the House would be scheduled for just three five-day workweeks next year–one each in March, June and August.

The surprising thing here is that the 5-day workweek generally extends from Monday at 6:30 pm to Friday around 2:00. A 3-day workweek runs from Tuesday evening through Thursday. Do Democrats really anticipate accomplishing so little next year?

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