Time to Check in.
DOGE can cut spending, but can it make the government more accountable?
It’s been a minute. I thought it was time to check in.
January was a busy month. I was published at the Hill twice and made my debut in RealClear Politics. I also set a personal goal to read 100 pages per day for the entire year. In January, I read 3,349 pages, or 108 pages per day, and completed six books.
Reading at such a clip, even for me, was difficult. As February hit, I was drained and didn’t read for the first four days of the month. It set me back, but I didn’t panic. I keep grinding away. As of now, I have caught up, reading 1,029 pages in the first ten days, which is an average of 102 pages per day—and completing three books so far.
If you follow me on Instagram and see my book pics, you will notice that what I read often feeds what I write. That was no different in January. In my first Hill article, I wrote about expanding the population; in my second article, I wrote about expanding the republic; and in my RealClear Politics article, I wrote about protecting American interests.
Are you picking up on a pattern?
I have a new article out today as well. I am particularly excited about this one because it’s about expanding the House of Representatives, and you all know how important that is to me. (Actually, it’s about the budget process, but you must uncap the house to provide proper accountability.) My favorite part of writing an article is the research, and today’s article was a ton of fun to research. Over the weekend, I read a biography on Warren G. Harding, the congressional record from March to June 1921, and several articles from the New York Times from 1919-1921. I like to immerse myself in the subject; it helps me clarify and organize my thoughts.
Click here to read the above article.
Spending so much time reading and writng makes balancing politics and parenting difficult for me sometimes. As a parent, I try to align my children's interests with my endeavors. My oldest daughter is a voracious reader like me, so I enlisted her to help me research my current article. Once I found the dates for the Budget and Accounting Act debates of 1921, I had her read through them first to help isolate the specific sections I needed. This allowed me to spend work time with one of my kids, and the time it saved me allowed me to spend more play time with all of them later that night for a little Super Bowl get-together.
While studying and writing, I am also aggressively applying for fellowships and political positions where I could excel. From my perspective, I see a lot of work that needs to be done, and not many people want to do it. Many look for shortcuts, but that’s not how my dad raised me. I know someone is out there looking for someone like me to help; it’s just a matter of time until God crosses our paths.
If you would like to help, please share my article from today. Set a goal of sending it to three, five, or ten friends. If you want to go above and beyond, call me and let me know what you think. Politics is isolating, and I don’t like to be isolated. I miss having friends and doing fun things. Sometimes, I am a little bitter about the path God put me on, but overall, I am happy to serve. I find joy in the grind.
Peace and Love,
Jeff Mayhugh