WHEN HOUSE WEBS CLOSE
Congresswoman Susan Molinari of New York was considered a rising star in the House GOP when she decided to leave the Hill to begin a new career with CBS News. The House Clerks Office kept Molinari's offices running until a successor was elected (Vincent Fosella won the seat on election day). And the Clerk also kept a place holder online where Molinari's home page had been, a nice alternative to the "Not Found" message that might have been expected for a more hastily vacated web office. Rep. Fosella wasted no time undertaking his new job, he was sworn in the day after election day. We'll see if he's as quick to re-open the 13th District's online office. And if you miss Molinari, you can still find her online too.
Office of the Thirteenth District of New York
CBS News Saturday Morning - Susan Molinari
THE STOP BOB ORANGE RIBBONS
Eager to see the end of the long running investigation into the validity of Representative Loretta Sanchez's victory over Bob Dornan in California's 46th District, the House Democratic Leadership has brought the case online with the "Stop Bob Dornan" page. The page provides background information about the investigation, including a listing of some of Dornan's suspect voters, and also invites visitors to sign an online petition in support of ending the investigation, and to use one of the provided orange ribbons (the 46th District is in Orange County, CA) on your own home page as a show of support. In the interest of equal time, I hunted for and found a home page that claims to be Dornan's "Voter Fraud Investigation Web Site", but I find it suspicious. For Bob's sake, it had better not be his site, because if the lack of any content is an indication of the lack of any case he's made he may as well just quit his whining and call it quits.
Robert K. Dornan's Voter Fraud Investigation Web Site
(a directory below an amphibious eyewear site? be skeptical.)
FURNISHING THE INTERNET
The Washington Post recent ran an editorial titled "Furnishing the Internet" which argued that government and congressional information is not are readily available online as it ought to be, and noting the efforts of the Congressional Accountability Project to nag Congress into action. Both are well worth a look.
The Washington Post - Furnishing the Internet
The Congressional Accountability Project
THE CAPITOL HOLIDAY TREE
What I believe must be the first web cam on Capitol Hill can be found on the home page of The Capitol Holiday Tree. Each year the National Forest Service brings a tree from one of its forests to Capitol Hill where it is decorated, illuminated, visited and enjoyed by many. This years tree is coming from the Black Hills National Forest in South Dakota, and Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle is ready to welcome the tree from his home state, and to bring this tree online. On Senator Daschle's home page for the Capitol's tree, you can find background information and photos of trees past and other Hill holiday photographs and events. But you can also take a look at the tree on the West Front of the Capitol (it arrives on Dec. 1) via the Tree Cam, which shoots a picture every minute and posts it to the web. I have to confess that I had something to do with this one, but also admit that I'd think it was pretty cool even if I hadn't *<:-)
UPDATE: SENATE SAYS NO TO LAPTOPS ON SENATE FLOOR Chairman John Warner (R-VA) and Ranking Member Wendell Ford (D-KY) both announced their opposition to a proposal to allow laptop computers to be used on the Senate floor (see Update #12) making approval of the proposal very unlikely. However, the spittoons will be staying put.
That's all for now!
Cheers,
Chris
Copyright ©1997 by Chris Casey
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