Many Democrats Move AWOL on Constituents, Nevertheless Have Offices Closed

When Hawaii Democratic Rep. Kai Kahele announced he would challenge then-Rep. Tulsi Gabbard to represent Hawaii’s 2nd Congressional District, he attacked Gabbard for abandoning her duties as a member of Congress in favor of a long-shot presidential campaign.

Now, less than two years into his own first term, it is Kahele who is not showing up for work — at least not for the job taxpayers are paying him to do.

As first reported by Honolulu Civil Beat, Kahele has not voted in person on the House floor since early January of this year. He has also missed important meetings with the Federal Transit Administration, as well as key Armed Services Committee hearings. Asked by Civil Beat to provide a schedule of Kahele’s activities over the past four months, his office declined to comment.

Civil Beat did report, however, that Kahele continues to work as a Hawaiian Airlines pilot, a job that pays him about $120,000 a year above and beyond the $174,000 that taxpayers pay him to represent Hawaii’s 2nd Congressional District.

According to lobbyists who work with the Hawaiian delegation, it appears Kahele’s staff have checked out too. “The office always had a work ethic,” a source told Civil Beat, “but it’s obvious that they decided not to show up anymore.”

One member of Congress failing to show up for work, even for months on end, wouldn’t be noteworthy. But it appears to have become a very common practice among Democrats since the COVID-19 pandemic.

A recent check of Capitol Hill found that six Senate Democrats’ offices had signs posted out front announcing that no staffers work there in person. Another six Senate Democratic offices appeared closed, with no staff to greet constituents at the front desk. Dozens of House Democrats’ offices appear similarly abandoned.

At the height of COVID, these absences would have been understandable. But this sweep of Capitol Hill came after President Joe Biden said in his State of the Union address, “It’s time for Americans to get back to work and fill our great downtowns again. People working from home can feel safe to begin to return to the office.”

Apparently, Democratic staffers are still too frightened of COVID to show up for work again. Or maybe they are just too lazy.

And it’s not just Capitol Hill staffers who aren’t showing up for work. The state offices of Democratic Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto in Nevada, Maggie Hassan in New Hampshire, and Mark Kelly in Arizona are also still closed.

Democrats can’t have it both ways. They cannot ask people to return to work and then not show up for work themselves. There is a lot that staff can accomplish legislatively over Zoom. There is a lot that staff can do to help constituents by email. But a legislative staff is much more effective at serving constituents and advancing legislative priorities in person — or when at least a few of them show up for work in person.

It is ultimately up to the voters whether it is important for these Democrats to show up at work. If Democrats get blown out in 2022, their decision to go AWOL on their constituents will be a cited as a major reason why.