ABSTRACT
The adjustments confronting any new member are profound: from campaigning to organizing legislative and constituent services offices, from the expectations and demands of one job or profession to those of another, from hometown family life to the bifurcated existence of an airborne commuter. Veteran House members can recall numerous horror stories of the trial-and-error process by which they were “oriented” to the institution. That process has been eased considerably, although not completely, by new member sessions that are held before the Congress formally convenes. Most new members seem to come in with euphoria from election night still lingering, full of campaign stories. The new member comes from the electoral arena into another arena, which is equally political and equally challenging, though not identical in the skills it requires or the behavior it rewards—the arena of House politics. The only contest that put new members on the spot was a challenge to Armed Services chairman Les Aspin.
