Capitol's Newcomers Try a Little Openness

Richard A. Baker, the Senate historian, cannot find a precedent for what Tester and Gillibrand are doing. Former Democratic senator Bob Graham of Florida was known for his eccentric habit of keeping a running log of his every waking activity, including the brand of breakfast cereal he consumed, but he never published the 4,400 notebooks he filled over 26 years of scribbling.

During her campaign for office, Gillibrand signed a pledge circulated by the Sunlight Foundation, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to bringing greater transparency to government. Of the 92 congressional candidates nationwide who agreed to the pledge, Gillibrand was the only one to win office.

"This is a recognition that 60 percent of Americans punch a clock, report on time sheets how much time they work and how they spend at time," said Ellen Miller, executive director of the foundation, which would like nothing more than a law requiring lawmakers to make their schedules public. "Why shouldn't members of Congress do the same?"

The Sunlight Foundation is archiving Tester's and Gillibrand's daily schedules at http://www.congresspedia.com in a format to allow searches and analysis.

Bill Frenzel, a scholar at the Brookings Institution who was a Republican member of Congress for 20 years, takes a dimmer view. "It sounds pretty silly," said Frenzel, who represented a Minnesota district. "People don't need to know who you're meeting with, they need to know whether you're available to meet with them."

He said he was reminded of former senator Richard Stone of Florida, who took the door to his office off its hinges to emphasize his own transparency. "Grandstanding is what you'd call it in minor league baseball," Frenzel said.

Tester and Gillibrand said their constituents like the public schedules and none of the lobbyists have grumbled about them. "If they're nervous about it it's probably someone I shouldn't be meeting with," Tester said.

According to his schedule, Tester sat down with AFL-CIO President John J. Sweeney and the union's legislative director, William Samuel on Jan. 24 for a half-hour. "I'm fine with it," Samuel said. "Unlike others in Washington, we have no interest in covering our tracks . . . We might have known more about how the Republicans were coming up with energy plans and prescription drug plans if we knew how much time they were spending with their corporate lobbyists."

Tester and Gillibrand both rode to office emphasizing corruption scandals and the need to bring new openness to Washington.

Tester, who was president of the Montana Senate in a Republican-leaning state, hammered on the fact that Burns accepted $150,000 in campaign contributions from disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, his firm and his clients. Burns later returned the money but Tester made Burns's connection to Abramoff a major part of the campaign. Tester was heavily outspent by Burns but won by 2,565 votes.

Gillibrand won her seat after painting her rival, Republican John E. Sweeney, as ethically troubled. Sweeney, an eight-year House veteran, took a trip to the Northern Mariana Islands with an Abramoff associate. Late in the campaign, it became public that police responded to a domestic violence call involving Sweeney and his wife.

Miller said the Sunlight Foundation plans to lobby other members of Congress to post their schedules. But with just two of 535 participating, there is a lot of work ahead.

Gillibrand said she wants to create a special caucus of like-minded members. She already has a name -- the Sunshine Caucus. Now all she needs are members, she said.