Five newly elected members of Congress and Senator-elect Juliana Stratton began training Monday to prepare them to represent Illinois in Washington. Among them is Congressman-elect Daniel Biss, who says voters sent a clear message in the midterm elections.
“Basically, the whole country rose up and said: We’ve had enough. We’ve had enough of Trump and MAGA, and we’re looking for a different direction,” said the outgoing mayor of Evanston. But the new Democratic lawmakers say a different direction also means delivering concrete results. The top item on the agenda is affordability. “People can’t afford groceries. They can’t afford gas, they can’t afford health care. They can’t afford rent. That’s true in both Democratic and Republican districts,” Biss added.
The orientation program gives new members an intensive course on how Congress works, from setting up offices and hiring staff to getting committee assignments. Patty Garcia would like to serve on the judiciary and transportation committees, La Shawn Ford wants to focus on energy and commerce, and Stratton, who will succeed longtime Sen. Dick Durbin, who is retiring, is interested in committees dealing with health care, agriculture and the judiciary.
Daniel Biss says that although everyone is still getting settled in, an even bigger challenge lies ahead. “All of our constituents are fed up, frustrated and on the verge of giving up trusting the government, so I think everyone here really wants to take action, and that’s exciting.” The new members of Congress will officially take on the challenge of turning promises into concrete action when they are sworn in and take office in January.
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Source: Polski.FM
