U.S. Rep. Wasserman Schultz joined local workers in South Florida to call on Gov. Scott to veto HB655

PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. – Earlier today, U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-23) called on Governor Rick Scott to veto HB655, a bill passed by Florida’s legislature that will have a negative impact on Florida’s workers, particularly working families.

The legislation, which was sent to Gov. Scott for his signature on Monday, would block local governments from adopting mandatory sick time benefits, forcing working parents to choose between taking care of their sick child at home or going to work so they don’t lose their job.

Speaking at Pompano Beach child care center Children In The Spirit, Wasserman Schultz talked about why this bill would harm working families in Florida:

“This has nothing to do with politics and everything to do with the values of our country. This is about the people – the working families – across Florida and our nation. I urge Governor Scott to do what’s right for Florida’s workers and families and veto this bill. The Legislature should sit down with business leaders, worker’s advocates and local governments to craft a workable compromise, rather than simply prohibit local elected officials from passing ordinances to improve the lives of their constituents.”

Wasserman Schultz was joined by Fred Frost with South Florida Jobs With Justice, Barbara Weinstein, the CEO and president of Family Central, Inc., and Nadege Moise, a single mother who works at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and makes $4.77 an hour.

On May 30, Democratic women in the Florida Congressional delegation sent a letter to Gov. Scott urging him to veto the bill.

Gov. Scott has 14 days left to take action on the bill.

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WASHINGTON – The U.S. House of Representatives voted today to pass the Homeland Security Appropriations bill for funding in fiscal year 2014. The legislation included language authored by U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-23) that was added to the bill in order to protect our nation’s children from exploitation.

Wasserman Schultz’s added language fences off $20 million in funds for Child Exploitation Investigations and forensics within Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE)’s Child Exploitation Investigation Unit at the Department of Homeland Security.

“There is no question that our children need our support now more than ever,” said Wasserman Schultz. “With the proliferation of the internet and wireless technology, the spread of child pornography online has to be addressed now. Every face in those photographs is the face of a child who needs our support in order to escape a living hell of constant abuse and exploitation.

“Last year there were more than 1,600 criminal arrests relating to child exploitation, and 2,600 worldwide investigations were launched, setting new records for Homeland Security Investigations. Already this year, there have been 1,382 criminal arrests relating to child exploitation. Their efforts are second to none, and I know they will continue to put these resources to good use. With the inclusion of this language, we are putting predators on notice. Their reign of terror is coming to an end – you can bet on it.”

The Department of Justice estimates that at any moment, there are more than one million pornographic images of children on the Internet, with an additional 200 images being posted every day. And more than one-third of the world’s pedophiles involved in organized pornography rings worldwide live in the US. The Internet allows these images to be disseminated indefinitely, victimizing that child victim again and again with each click of the mouse.

Additional language was also included to encourage the hiring of veterans to help fight child exploitation.

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“Sexual assault, whether it is a rape or any other type of sexual assault, is an act of violence. It is not a sex act. It is not the result of passion or desire and it needs to be treated as the crime that it is. That’s why it needs to be taken out of the chain of command so that we can have trained prosecutors and a judicial system that actually ensures there is serious accountability for these crimes and that we make sure up and down the chain of command that there’s a clear understanding that this conduct is absolutely unacceptable.”

Wasserman Schultz has called U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) to apologize for comments he made Tuesday at a Senate Armed Services committee hearing about sexual crimes in the military that seemed to attribute the problem to natural hormone levels in males.

A recent Pentagon report estimated that as many as 26,000 military service members may have been assaulted in 2012. According to the report, only 3,374 instances were reported, and of those cases, there were 238 convictions. The Pentagon also reported a 35% surge in the number of active-duty personnel receiving “unwanted sexual contact” in the past two years.

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Today, Ask Listen Learn traveled to sunny Miami Beach, Florida to visit 460 students at Nautilus Middle School! This time, we were really excited to have Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz joining us as we educate kids about the dangers of underage drinking and choosing a healthy lifestyle.

Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz talked to the students about peer pressure and the importance of knowing what tools are available to them to say NO to underage drinking. She encouraged them to have the strength to face peer pressure and help friends to do the same.

She told the middle schoolers that they can control their own destiny, and they can do so through making smart choices to guide their paths. She then asked them to talk to their parents and friends, and take the Ask, Listen, Learn pledge to a healthy lifestyle.

It was a really special day today as we wind down our events for this school year, and as we wish Principal Bernstein all the best in her new adventures, as she retired today! Thanks again to Nautilus Middle School and Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz for a great day in hot and sunny Miami Beach. We’ll see you in the Fall for more great events at cool middle schools around the country!

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NBC6 (WTVJ-MIAMI)

Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz Advocates Safe Swimming in Broward
Plantation school teaches children, adults how to swim in 5 days

By Betty Yu

Summer is unofficially underway, and that means kids will be spending more time in the pool.

Broward County leads the country in drowning deaths in children under the age of four, so Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz teamed up with Baby Otter Andre Dawson Aquatic Center in Plantation to remind parents that there simple ways to prevent such tragedies.

“I’m a mom of three kids, two of my kids are twins, I know even the most vigilant parent cannot end up watching their child 24-7,” Wasserman-Schultz said Tuesday. “When supervision lapses, we have to make sure that there’s an obstacle in the path of that child.”

That means either physical barriers such as fences or swim lessons, which are offered at the school.

“We have a pool and then our family members have pools so we’re always around a pool, we’re at the beach, so I just want to make sure he knows how to swim just in case he has an accident,” parent Laura Souffrant said.

The school’s survival program teaches people of all ages, including children as young as nine months old and senior citizens, how to swim in five days.

“In Florida, it’s so important, there’s so many drownings, there’s so much water around, whether it be a lake, a pool, canal, the ocean,” aquatic center owner Marlene Bloom said. “I mean, there’s just so much water around that we have to protect our children.”

Ginelle Millan’s son Jordan didn’t know how to swim when he almost drowned at family party two years ago. She said she was distracted for a few seconds.

“Talking, what not, when I turned around the next thing I see is my son floating at the top of the pool and words can’t express how that feels,” Millan said. “It can happen to anyone.”

The Florida Department of Health said last year there were nine drowning deaths in children under the age of three in Broward County alone.

“Every drowning is preventable, every drowning,” said the DOH’s Kim Burgess. “You’re the parent, you be responsible, you keep your child safe, put up as many barriers including swim lessons.”

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Many rely on local agencies to help them afford basic necessities such as food and health care, which is why U.S. Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Ted Deutch (D-FL), David Joyce (R-OH), and Henry A. Waxman (D-CA), introduced a bill today that would bolster agencies that work to provide support services to Holocaust survivors in the U.S., from improved home care services to transportation options.

The Responding to the Urgent Needs of Survivors of the Holocaust Act, or the RUSH Act, supports the goal of ensuring that Holocaust survivors are able to live with dignity, comfort, and security in their remaining years. To do so, this bipartisan bill would add Holocaust survivors to a priority list for social services that are provided as part of the Older Americans Act, including nutrition services, mental health counseling, and home modifications.

The bill would also designate someone within the Administration on Aging to oversee the implementation of all the services to survivors to ensure the full intent of the bill is carried out, and ensures that meals provided by the Older Americans Act meet special cultural and religious dietary needs. Because transportation is one of the greatest needs of these seniors, another integral part of the bill invests in resources and services to provide improved transportation options for this vulnerable group.

“As a nation that upholds the values of freedom, liberty, and justice, we have a moral obligation to acknowledge the plight and uphold the dignity of Holocaust survivors to ensure their well-being,” said Rep. Wasserman Schultz. “Our children’s generation will be the last to know Holocaust survivors and hear their stories first hand. We must do all we can to honor their struggles and their lives by improving their access to transportation to get them where they need to go, and improve their home-care options so that they can have peace of mind. This bill does just that, and it’s time to make it happen.”

Rep. Ros-Lehtinen said, “I’m proud to join Debbie, my South Florida colleague, in her strong leadership on this issue as we introduce the RUSH Act. Holocaust survivors have endured unspeakable atrocities and have persevered through unparalleled hardships. They have withstood it all for decades. They deserve to live out the remainder of their days in dignity and comfort. This bill will provide them with a broad array of social services from improved transportation options to mental health and nutritional services. It is an important measure that will help ease survivors’ daily burdens.”

A Senate version of the RUSH Act was introduced today by U.S. Sens. Ben Cardin (D-MD), Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Barbara Mikulski (D-MD).

“As survivors of terror and torture, these Holocaust survivors came to our country seeking the American Dream,” said Sen. Cardin. “They have enriched our nation and now they have special needs and would benefit from additional social service programs that will allow them to age in place in their current residences. I believe we have an obligation to provide them with access to the community support and services they need.”

The RUSH Act is supported by the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA); Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty; American Jewish Committee (AJC); Survivor Initiative; Association of Jewish Family and Children’s Agencies; Anti-Defamation League (ADL); the Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA); and Selfhelp Community Services, Inc.

In December 2010, Wasserman Schultz introduced a resolution that passed in the House that recognizes the needs of aging Holocaust survivors and the work of the agencies that help support them. This bill takes that idea and turns it into a reality by making it possible for these agencies to provide the support that is so vital to these Holocaust survivors.

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By Mike Clary

SUNRISE – Those who knew Bill Kling agree that in dedicating more than three decades of his life to the cause of military veterans, the tireless community activist never sought recognition or glory.

But Kling, the longtime head of the Broward County Veterans Council who died last year at the age of 84, got a bit of that anyway Sunday at a ceremony to rename the VA outpatient clinic in Sunrise the William “Bill” Kling VA Clinic.

“In my dad’s wildest dreams, I don’t think he ever imagined a day such as this,” Steven Kling told about 200 people who gathered at the 98,000-square-foot facility known since its 2008 opening as the Broward County VA Outpatient Clinic.

“He would be very proud.”

The renaming of the clinic comes as a result of a bill introduced in U.S. House of Representatives by South Florida Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, of Weston, and Ted Deutch of Boca Raton, both of whom knew Kling well for his work with the Democratic Party.

Similar legislation was sponsored in the Senate by Florida Sen. Bill Nelson.

In speaking of Kling, both Wasserman Schultz and Deutch recalled his understated but effective lobbying style.

“It always seemed like he was just in the neighborhood, and just popped in,” said Wasserman Schultz. “But it was never just an accident. He was always peddling something, and that was to improve the lives of veterans.”

As a boy, Steven Kling said he came to understand early that his father, a Navy veteran of World War II, felt a burning desire to help others. From his television repair shop in the Bronx, he made house calls in neighborhoods where other service people did not go, said Kling.

“He just always wanted to help,” said Kling, who lives in Wayne, N.J.

When he moved to South Florida in the early 1970s, Kling ran Perfect Television, on Broward Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale. He also spent two decades working as a process server for the Broward Sheriff’s Office.

He was a political activist as well, serving as president of the Plantation Democratic Club for more than 20 years.

But improving health and educational benefits to veterans was his passion. He helped open the Oakland Park VA Outpatient Clinic more than two decades ago, and when that building began to deteriorate, he worked to build the facility that now bears his name.

Michael Weiss, 71, and Morry Goldfarb, 80, knew Kling through their membership in the Jewish War Veterans. “He never raised his voice,” said Weiss, who lives in Vero Beach. “He was quietly persuasive, and persistent. And he was the go-to guy if you wanted something done.”

Added Goldfarb, of Delray Beach: “In a nine-day week, he worked eight days. Helping veterans was his calling.”

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“Today, we learned that actress and human rights advocate Angelina Jolie underwent a preventative double mastectomy after learning she carries a genetic mutation, BRCA-1, that dramatically increases her risk of developing breast or ovarian cancer.

“As a carrier of the related BRCA-2 gene mutation myself, I am grateful to Angelina for bravely sharing her story, and demonstrating to all women that when it comes to our health – knowledge is power. By taking her family history and health decisions into her own hands, Angelina has sharply reduced her chances of getting diagnosed with the disease that tragically affects 1 in 8 women in our country today.

“It was shortly after my 41st birthday, and only 6 months after a clean mammogram, that I felt a lump while doing a routine self-exam in the shower. I was familiar enough with my body to know that something felt wrong, and sure enough, my doctor confirmed it with those devastating words – I had cancer. With an examination into my family history, it was recommended that I receive the genetic testing that ultimately discovered a mutation in the BRCA-2 gene, putting me, like Angelina, at a more than 80 percent lifetime risk of getting breast cancer as well as ovarian cancer. We both made difficult decisions and underwent multiple surgeries to ensure that we would be around to watch our kids grow up.

“I can totally relate to Angelina’s experience. I have had difficult conversations with my young daughters because as a BRCA-2 carrier, there is nothing more gut-wrenching as a mom than not being able to reassure your children that they have nothing to worry about. I have promised my daughters that I will always make sure they have all the information they need to stay on top of their health and the knowledge and tools available to help save their lives. I will fight to make sure they grow up in a world that is determined to give them the best health care opportunities possible.

“With that in mind, as soon as I was cancer free, I introduced the Breast Health Education and Awareness Requires Learning Young Act, or the EARLY Act, which became law along with the Affordable Care Act in 2010. The EARLY Act focuses on a central tenet: that we must empower young women to understand their bodies and speak up for their health. The EARLY Act creates an education and outreach campaign that will highlight the breast cancer risks facing young women 45 and under – especially communities at higher risk for genetic mutations like BRCA-1 and BRCA-2 – and empower them with the tools they need to fight this deadly disease. It is designed to help educate and sensitize health care providers about the specific threats and warning signs of breast cancer in younger women that lead to early detection, diagnosis, and survival.

“Angelina serves as a courageous role model, and I hope women across the country are taking notice of her message to young women that they have the ability to make informed choices when it comes to their health.”

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Jack Lew went from White House chief of staff to US secretary of the treasury, but he’s still every bit as influential.

10. DNC chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz

Debbie Wasserman Schultz wears many hats: congresswoman, mom, chief deputy whip in the House of Representatives and chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee.

As DNC chairwoman, Wasserman Schultz, 46, was responsible for the fund-raising and campaigning efforts for US President Barack Obama last year, which obviously paid off, particularly in her home state of Florida. She was renominated for the position in January by the White House, despite rumors of tension between them over her outspokenness.

Her dedication to Obama’s reelection – she attended more than 885 events in 31 states over the course of the campaign – is what ultimately earned her a second term at the helm.

The tenacious legislator was only the second woman ever elected to lead the DNC, and its youngest head in several decades. She is also a member of the House Appropriations Committee, arguably the body’s most powerful.

The breast-cancer survivor is a prominent proponent of Obama’s healthcare reform act, battling the governor of her own state earlier this month for not adhering to the US Supreme Court ruling on the law, and speaking out in favor of the legislation across the country.

Wasserman Schultz also played an instrumental role in passing an act establishing May as Jewish American Heritage Month in 2006.

FULL ARTICLE

http://www.jpost.com/Jewish-World/Jewish-Features/Top-50-most-influential-Jews-2013-Places-1-10-313129

1. Finance Minister Yair Lapid

2. US Secretary of the Treasury Jack Lew

Entering the job during a devastating economic collapse, Timothy Geithner had a difficult run as US secretary of the Treasury. But his successor, Jack Lew, 57, doesn’t have it much better. The Orthodox Jewish Treasury chief faces IMF reform, the challenge of the euro, a slow recovery at home and – perhaps most daunting – an unprecedented budget crisis with a Congress unwilling or unable to act.

But that last challenge is just why Lew was chosen.

Formerly director of the Office of Management and Budget, Lew has a mastery of micromanagement and detail. And working under a president who has made clear his legacy must include a strong economic turnaround, the pressure on Lew is extraordinary, as are the possibilities of his tenure. Lew is certainly hoping that his legacy won’t be limited to his oddly loopy signature adorning US paper currency during his tenure.

In the short time since he took up his post, Lew is already using his pulpit to apply pressure on his European counterparts to ease off on austerity measures. Whether they listen will be a testament to his influence, and to America’s greater influence in markets weary of US financial advice.

- Michael Wilner

3. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, 63, called new elections earlier this year hoping – indeed expecting – to be returned to power with a strengthened hand. It was not to be.

The man who has sat in the prime minister’s chair for seven years, one month, and counting – longer than any other Israeli leader with the exception of David Ben-Gurion – was chastised by the electorate as his combined list with Yisrael Beytenu lost some 30 percent of its pre-election strength.

Nevertheless – and this is the bottom line – Netanyahu was returned to power. But the public that returned him to office for a third term also sent him a clear message: We want you to continue to lead the country, but we demand change.

The change demanded – manifest in how well Yesh Atid’s Yair Lapid and Bayit Yehudi’s Naftali Bennett did at the polls – was that the country’s internal social contract needed to be radically adjusted.

Paradoxically, the country was able to turn inward in these elections for perhaps the first time in its history because of the stability Netanyahu and his government provided. Even as the region roiled, Netanyahu provided the country with enhanced security, as the lowest terrorist statistics in years attest. He provided political stability by almost serving a full term. And he provided macro economic security at a time when the global economy suffered crisis after crisis.

But he did not provide a vision, and for that he was punished. Punished, but not sacked.

Netanyahu bought himself more time at Israel’s helm, and – by extension – at the helm of the Jewish people. It remains to be seen whether he will use that time to leave a signature and indelible impact and be remembered as a leader of stature, or just as a very successful politician.

-Herb Keinon

4. President Shimon Peres

Age hasn’t slowed down President Shimon Peres, who turns 90 this summer and continues to tirelessly represent Israel around the globe.

Peres, a former prime minister, foreign minister, defense minister and finance minister, has regular meetings with the prime minister, heads of Israel’s intelligence and security operations, leaders of political parties and then some. Several times a year he also receives the credentials of new ambassadors to Israel, and hosts countless local and overseas organizations and delegations in his role as head of state.

Peres is one of Israel’s most frequent fliers, representing the country in Rome and Assisi at the end of April, in Belgium and France in March and at the World Economic Conference in Davos, Switzerland. Last year he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from US President Barack Obama, and has been one of the country’s most vocal proponents of peace. While he has sparred with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu occasionally over whether to act alone or rely on the US to handle Iran – and the world took notice – he generally seeks to present a unified voice from the government.

This summer, Peres will play host instead of guest, as he emcees the fifth annual Presidential Conference, with headliners including former US president Bill Clinton, singer Barbra Streisand, actress Sharon Stone and former Soviet Union president Mikhail Gorbachev in attendance.

-Greer Fay Cashman

5. Women of the Wall chairwoman Anat Hoffman

6. Google founder Sergey Brin

Have you ever created something that became one of the most-used verbs in modern language? Sergey Brin did. The Soviet Union-born computer scientist and entrepreneur – along with Larry Page, who also has Jewish lineage – started the search engine Google back in 1996, which has today become synonymous with looking something up on the Internet.

From there, Brin, 39 – who received $1 in compensation from Google last year – oversaw its development into not just the most visited website in the world, but also a multinational, publicly traded company that raked in $50 billion in profits in 2012.

Far from just a search engine today, the company offers email, social networking, instant messaging and browsing services, as well as the Android cellphone operating program, and owns the highly popular YouTube and the blogging platform Blogger.

In his role as director of special projects, Brin is presiding over developments including self-driving cars, space research and Google Glass, a wearable, eyeglasses-type computer that is voice commanded and possibly the most buzzed about innovation in technology today, and is expected to be available to the general public later this year.

- Amy Spiro

7. Daily Show host Jon Stewart

US President Barack Obama, King Abdullah II of Jordan, former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan and US Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. All of the above – plus the most elite Hollywood celebrities – have sat down over the past year with Jon Stewart, the host of the ostensibly satirical TV program The Daily Show.

But when Stewart, 50, talks, the world listens. He’s issued diatribes in favor of gun control, veterans’ rights and excoriating various media outlets. His serious takes on the day’s pressing issues have caused The New York Times to label him “the modern- day equivalent of Edward R. Murrow.”

Stewart has inspired and defended political satirists around the globe, most prominently Bassem Youssef, an Egyptian TV host who was arrested in March for insulting Islam and President Mohamed Morsi. Stewart took to his show to slam the arrest, and the US Embassy in Cairo posted a link of Stewart’s monologue to its Twitter feed, angering both the Muslim Brotherhood and Morsi’s office.

The TV host, whose brand of Jewish humor also features prominently on the show, is taking a hiatus this summer from his program to direct a film about the story of Iranian-Canadian journalist Maziar Bahari, who was imprisoned and tortured in Iran for four months, partly because of a joke interview he had done on Stewart’s show.

- Amy Spiro

8. Facebook CEO Sheryl Sandberg

The chief operating officer of Facebook is not only one of the most powerful businesswomen in the world, but she has also ignited a conversation across the US about feminism and how women can empower themselves in the workplace with her controversial and best-selling new book, Lean In.

Like Betty Friedan’s consciousness-raising groups inspired by her book The Feminine Mystique on “the problem that has no name,” Lean In has brought the challenges faced by this generation of working females to national attention. It too is inspiring groups of women around the country to gather and discuss strategies for succeeding in their jobs.

Sandberg, 43, has the professional experience to back up her advice. She has been Facebook’s COO since 2008, has previously served as vice president of global online sales and operations at Google, and helped launch Google’s philanthropic arm, Google.org. She also served as chief of staff for Treasury chief Lawrence Summers during the Clinton administration.

- Rachel Marder

9. Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon

Moshe Ya’alon, 62, took up the role of defense minister in March – a position he sought for years – at a time of large-scale regional instability, and just as Israel faces a decisive year on the Iranian nuclear question.

By some accounts, 2013 could be a fateful year, when Israel will have to decide whether to take military action to stop Tehran’s nuclear quest, or entrust the United States to do so, should diplomacy and economic sanctions fail.

In addition to Iran, the former IDF chief of staff will have to tackle mammoth security issues, including the disintegration of Syria, the fate of its vast chemical weapons arsenal, and its transformation to a failed state filled with al-Qaida-inspired radical jihadis.

In neighboring Lebanon, Hezbollah – armed with more than 60,000 rockets and a well-trained guerrilla force – remains the most formidable enemy in Israel’s immediate geographic circle. To the south, Hamas is recuperating from the damage it sustained during last year’s bruising yet brief confrontation with Israel, and is busy converting the Gaza Strip into a Islamist emirate as well as a rocket base.

Sinai continues to be an al-Qaida trouble spot, while further south in Cairo, Ya’alon will have to keep a wary eye on the Muslim Brotherhood’s steps and intentions toward Israel. To the east, Ya’alon will be monitoring the West Bank for signs of increased violence.

The new defense minister will be very busy.

-Yaakov Lappin

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How Debbie Wasserman Schultz Does It
By DEBBIE WASSERMAN-SCHULTZ and KJ DELL’ANTONIA

Friday, April 19, 2013, Weston, Fla.

9:30 p.m.: Coming home from the airport, I call Steve, my husband, to be rescued from a staffer’s car stuck in an exceptionally long guard gate line. As I do most weeks, I spent the past week in Washington. I’ll spend the weekend juggling family and constituents. I’m home, but I’m still working.

Steve agrees to come, but our 9-year-old, Shelby, is bringing two friends, twins, over for a sleepover. He wants to be home when they get there, and we just make it — they’re all three in the driveway with the twins’ dad when we pull up. We invite their dad in. Our house has its normally chaotic, cluttered look; our dogs greet us all as we come in. Welcome home!

9:45 p.m.: The girls’ dad leaves. Steve suggests Shelby and friends go for a night swim with our new puppy, who could use a swimming pool bath. The girls jump at the chance.

9:55 p.m.: I play basketball with our 13-year-old, Jake, with part of me feeling that I need to watch President Obama’s news conference on the Boston Marathon bomber capture. Jake hounds me to stop typing this and play. When I turn on the television later, worried about what I missed, I find that Steve recorded it for me — without my asking — so I could keep playing.

10:15 p.m.: Jake’s done playing basketball. We go inside. I suggest we play a game. I tell the girls they have five more minutes in the pool. Steve goes to bed — he woke up at 3 last night and couldn’t sleep. Shelby and her friends (and Demmy, one of the dogs) go upstairs.

10:45 p.m.: Play “Anomia” with Jake. Girls come down for a snack.

11 p.m.: Jake decides we should watch a “good show” together. We make popcorn, which I burn (I like, Jake hates). We watch “Tanked,” a reality show about an aquarium shop. I mark up a speech I’m giving at my small-business workshop tomorrow morning. Jake and I talk about school and baseball. I ask if he’s done his homework (he has). His twin sister, Rebecca, calls from a friend’s house and asks if I am picking her up from her friend’s at noon tomorrow to take her bathing-suit shopping. I explain I probably won’t have time to do that, so she asks if we can go to Barnes & Noble “just me and you.” We laugh that that won’t be a problem because she and I are the only book lovers in the family. Good conversation. I tell her I’ll pick her up after the workshop.

11:30 p.m.: Jake goes upstairs to play Xbox and go to bed. We go back and forth over him being home tomorrow afternoon. He wants to go to his best friend’s house during the only block of time I’m home for the rest of the weekend. Jake tells me he wanted me to watch his baseball game tomorrow, but it starts at the time I leave for the airport. I tell him his friend should come to our house. He complains about my working out of town on the weekend when I just got home. My heart hurts.

11:45 p.m.-1 a.m.: Review speeches for tomorrow, review other work, watch coverage of Boston Marathon bomber capture.

7-7:45 a.m.: Wake up, spend some time with Steve before we get out of bed to start our Saturday. Cat jumps on bed for morning ritual of sitting on top of me insisting on me petting him. We watch a “Daily Show” episode from last week.

8 a.m.: Get up, get ready for my annual small-business workshop.

8:30 a.m.: Shelby and friends come into our (messy) bedroom. Shelby and I laugh about how my home office is worse, so, of course, she goes and shows her friends.

8:45 a.m.: Laurie, my staff person, arrives to drive me to the event.

9 a.m.: Steve calls Dunkin’ Donuts to make sure they have fresh bagels. He takes the girls with him to Dunkin’ Donuts.

9:15 a.m.: Leave with Laurie to go to the event at the Broward County Convention Center. We stop at Starbucks to grab my morning Frappuccino. I say hi and chat with the manager, whom I’ve come to know since I’m there every morning I’m home.

9:30 a.m.-12:45 p.m.: Small Business Expo. Our sleepover guests go home with their father. Jake sleeps in. In the afternoon, Steve will take Shelby to ballet.

12:45 p.m.: Laurie and I leave the convention center to pick up Rebecca from her friend’s house.

1:30 p.m.: Rebecca, Steve and I sit riveted as we watch the moving pregame ceremony on TV of the Boston Red Sox game honoring first responders, heroic citizens and Boston Marathon volunteers. I cry through the ceremony. Rebecca says, “Oh God, Mom!”

2 p.m.: I leave to take Rebecca to the bookstore and to our favorite sandwich shop, Cheese Course. Driving, talking with Rebecca, catching up on her week, life, she asks my advice and actually takes it. This is such important time.

3:45 p.m.: Pick up Shelby at ballet. Rebecca goes in to get her. They watch Rebecca’s best friend, who attends the same ballet school. Shelby comes out and asks if her friend Delaney can come over; then we decide on a sleepover. Delaney’s mom reminds me we are both late on our name-plate craft for the ballet performance coming up. I will need to help Shelby next weekend after I get home.

On the car ride back, Shelby and Rebecca go back and forth in (reasonably) friendly banter about who is going on a better trip with Mom this year. Shelby also informs me that she thinks her full dress rehearsal is next weekend, when she will be in D.C. This is a big problem since her flight has been booked and paid for and she can’t miss the dress rehearsal.

4 p.m.: At home, Rebecca and I eat lunch. Steve tells Rebecca to feed the dogs. She protests, says Shelby should do it. Shelby says she always does it. Steve does it, not too happy. I mention the possible conflict with Shelby’s flight and ballet dress rehearsal. We decide to wait for confirmation on rehearsal times before changing Shelby’s return flight, which will cost money. Shelby and Delaney do a bracelet craft at the counter.

4:30 p.m.: I clean up from lunch and realize I need to go to the drugstore for hair product before my trip. Rebecca asks if she can come.

5:15 p.m.: Rebecca and I drive home. Rebecca goes upstairs to read one of her new books. I sit down with Shelby and Delaney while they play a game, and I fill out a form for Rebecca’s youth group membership and check e-mail. I get an e-mail from my travel staffer reminding me to take my D.C. house keys with me, which I forgot in Florida last week. I had to use her key all week. Steve goes to Walmart to get a tent for Shelby’s soccer tournament tomorrow morning. Delaney is coming with him to watch Shelby play.

6:15 p.m.: I go upstairs to pack for my trip. Rebecca asks me to help her send away for replacement sunglasses that she lost. I go down to get the sunglasses case, go back upstairs, climb up on her loft to help her. Then I start packing. I need to leave for the airport no later than 7 p.m. for my flight to Cleveland.

6:30 p.m.: I ask Rebecca to come read her book in my room to keep me company while I pack. She says O.K., but takes a while. I ask again and she climbs in my bed to read while I’m packing.

6:45 p.m.: I’m looking for my D.C. house keys, which I cannot find anywhere in the house. I’m running out of time. I have four still-not-unpacked suitcases in my room from prior trips. No time to look through them, and I can’t remember what’s in them. Look for empty travel-size bottles to fill with my new hair products, which are too many ounces for carry-on. Have to empty old hotel shampoo bottles.

7 p.m.: I rush to grab my phone chargers and change clothes for the flight. Let Rebecca know her youth group forms are filled out and on the dining-room table. Zip my carry-on bag closed.

7:10 p.m.: I call out to Steve that I’m leaving and will see him next Saturday when he meets me in D.C. for the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. Kiss Shelby goodbye and remind her that I’ll see her Wednesday when she comes up to D.C. to spend two days with her friend and friend’s grandparents. She will fly as an unaccompanied minor. Out the door to head to the airport for my flight at 8:13 p.m.; airport is a half-hour ride.

On Monday, our house cleaner will come and spend the entire day cleaning the house and doing all the laundry, including putting it away. While we certainly recognize that this is a luxury, we decided it was worth budgeting for. Laundry became a stress point for us. When I ran for Congress and gave birth to Shelby, our third child, I knew that there was no way I could come home from D.C. every week and spend the entire weekend sorting laundry, washing laundry, folding laundry and putting away laundry while arguing about how much of it Steve and the kids could have done while I was away. Steve resisted at first, but it was one of the best decisions I ever made, because it gave me some of my most precious commodity: time.

During the week, Steve handles almost all driving of kids to sports (all three play on a travel team), ballet, math tutor, etc. My parents live five minutes from us in our hometown, and they help drive the kids when needed and can pick them up from school most of the time if one of the kids is sick and Steve can’t leave work. I handle the kids’ school needs, monitoring assignments and what they need for projects, etc. I do a lot of this remotely, and have throughout the years, by telephone, fax and iPad. Project supply purchases are done on the weekends when I get home. I am also the parent who communicates with their teachers when necessary, helps them choose their courses, etc. Steve’s brother and sister-in-law live 15 minutes from us and can sometimes help when we need another adult pair of hands when I’m out of town.

I won’t be home again until next Sunday.

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