Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell of California said Wednesday that Congress should be more forward-thinking and allow lawmakers to do more of their work remotely, rather than crisscrossing the nation every week to get to Capitol Hill.
His constituents in Silicon Valley said they find it odd that representatives do not leverage technology to get more done outside of Washington.
“They think we’re crazy to fly back and forth every week when so much of our work can be done remotely, with our cell phones,” he told MSNBC’s The Daily Rundown.
“Why not act like the business community does?” he said, when it comes to the more perfunctory work they do in Congress.
Mr. Swalwell said doing so would allow lawmakers — especially new mothers — to fulfill their child-raising duties, and free up lawmakers to work on more substantive issues when they meet face to face.
The idea is likely to receive pushback from old-school members, who argue Congress should be together more often to break through deep-seated partisanship on the Hill.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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