Adam Frisch flashed a smile as he walked into the Hyatt Regency in Washington, D.C., on Sunday before the start of orientation for the job he’s hoping to win. Frisch was dressed like a D.C. politico in jacket and tie, with the American flag pin on his lapel that has been a constant during his campaign for the 3rd Congressional District seat. He joined newly elected representatives as well as those who remain in undecided races, which includes CD3 at the time of this writing.
Invitees of this special class are oriented to hit the ground running. Frisch is moving through D.C. with a kind of respect that is welcome. And we expect nothing less.
Unlike job training per se, it’s a tour de force of possibilities.
We’ll take some literary license as we imagine the tour to include the office for Frisch, should he win. Here are the chambers where he’d work with colleagues on policies. The gym is open 24/7 with a code.
Frisch did say orientation covered protocol on Capitol police, cybersecurity, how to hire employees. That kind of thing. “You feel the importance of the job,” he said.
It would be difficult not to get one’s hopes up in these hallowed hallways.
Because that’s what they are. The U.S. Capitol holds our highest hopes for our country as well as us as individual Americans. It is deserving of reverence. The Capitol is an architectural beauty, housing the meeting chambers of the Senate and the House of Representatives for more than two centuries. With construction starting in 1793, the Capitol has been built, burned, rebuilt, extended and restored, then desecrated and trashed on Jan. 6. Gunshots have been fired shots at it, items thrown over the fence and a gyrocopter even landed on the West Lawn. In front, many demonstrations underscoring our growth and regress as a nation were staged on First Street SE, symbolic in its own right.
As votes are cured and counted, Frisch remained optimistic but reserved. “I am not going to get over my skis,” he said as he has before. He’s striking the right tone.
Frisch also shared how it felt to walk into the Capitol. “It’s humbling,” he said. “It’s a heck of an office building to show up for your job and clock in. It’s prideful to even be in this position.”
It’s fresh to hear a potential representative speak with humility.
Something encouraging that stood out in our conversation was a sense of camaraderie with a lot of support to feel safe and treated fairly. “Federal staff wants to make sure you can deliver to your district to the best of your ability,” he said.
One thing that separates Frisch from other representatives – elected or in limbo – is the vastness that is CD3. Some districts include a couple of counties, not 27. To represent the territory, geography and people that make up CD3 is distinct.
Earlier this week, Frisch talked with Colorado Public Radio about goals, if he were to win.
“Water's number one, energy two, and agriculture, farming and ranching is number three,” he said.
Concerns that affect all constituents. Not one particular base.
We could see Frisch at the Capitol. Walking through the door. Getting his mail. Pouring coffee. Readying for a visitor from CD3. It’s like a mirage with a stand-in, stunt double. We see the possibilities of getting work done. All constituents – and issues – no longer ignored.
