Congress Is Leaving Early. Again, the Fine Print Matters.

Just weeks before the midterm elections, House Republican leadership has decided to cancel the final two weeks of September votes.

That means House members are now scheduled to leave Washington on September 17 and not return until after the November election.

Yes, you read that correctly.

With Americans worried about the cost of living, an ongoing war with Iran, and plenty of unfinished business in Washington, the House is essentially saying:

See you after Election Day.

So why are they leaving?

There is an important piece of context.

Congress did manage to avoid an immediate government shutdown by passing a continuing resolution that funds federal agencies through December.

That's good.

Keeping the government open shouldn't be controversial, and I'm certainly not going to criticize Congress for actually getting something done.

But avoiding a shutdown doesn't mean Congress suddenly ran out of work.

The original House calendar had lawmakers working later into September. According to Democratic Minority Whip Katherine Clark, canceling these scheduled voting days leaves the House with only four legislative days before the midterm elections.

That's where I have a problem.

Election season shouldn't mean Congress stops governing.

Republicans are heading into a difficult midterm election environment.

President Trump's war in Iran has become increasingly unpopular. Americans are still dealing with high living costs. And Republicans are fighting to maintain control of the House.

So now members get additional time back home right before voters head to the polls.

I'm sure that's just a coincidence.

Look, campaigning is part of politics. Democrats do it. Republicans do it. Every member of Congress has to go home and convince voters to send them back to Washington.

But they're also being paid to govern.

Those two responsibilities shouldn't be mutually exclusive.

There's another problem Republicans are dealing with.

Speaker Mike Johnson isn't exactly managing a unified House Republican conference.

A procedural vote nearly collapsed this week after five Republicans broke with their leadership. Democrats Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and Jared Golden ultimately crossed party lines and helped advance the legislation.

That's an important little detail.

Because when leadership suddenly decides there isn't much reason for Congress to stick around, it's fair to ask whether the problem is really a lack of work—or a lack of votes.

Sometimes it's easier to send everyone home than keep trying to manage a divided caucus.

And here's the part that bothers me most.

Imagine telling your employer:

"I finished one important project, I've got an election coming up in November, so I'm going to cancel two weeks of work and head home early."

Good luck with that.

Most Americans don't get to rearrange their work calendar because they'd rather spend the next several weeks trying to keep their jobs.

Members of Congress apparently can.

And maybe voters should remember that when those same lawmakers come home and start explaining everything they're going to accomplish if we just send them back to Washington.

Because before we listen to what politicians promise they'll do next year, it's worth looking at what they're choosing to do right now.

In this case?

They're leaving.

That's the fine print.

— Political Fine Print