News Home

Constituent service takes many forms
How my office can help with a trip to Washington

By Congresswoman Virginia Foxx

Do you think of members of Congress and envision that the many votes they cast consume most of their time and energy?  While voting is a fundamental and vital part of my work, it is really just one segment of what I do as your representative. My staff and I interact with thousands of constituents each month, answering questions about legislation before Congress, helping with federal casework issues and providing numerous other services for constituents. 

Each year hundreds and hundreds of North Carolina families from the Fifth Congressional District make the trip to America’s capital city to take in the sites and soak up our national history.

One of the oft-overlooked, but very pleasant, services we provide is helping arrange tours of places like the Capitol or House Gallery for visitors to Washington.  Sometimes that means arranging a tour of the Capitol and other times it means explaining how the voting process works when fellow North Carolinians are in the Capitol while Congress debates and votes on legislation. 

A trip to Washington, DC is a tremendous opportunity to see the places and memorials that mark watershed moments in our history and sometimes that history is just days or even hours old. 

A familiar refrain from visitors is, “I learned so much.”  Hearing such a comment gives this former teacher a great feeling.  Washington is ripe with opportunities to unpack our history and learn about your government. 

Not only is the city overflowing with museums and experts dedicated to unearthing and explaining American history and government, but it is an active laboratory at the intersection of government and history.  Each day brings something new, waiting to be explored.

Thomas Jefferson once wrote that, “If a nation expects to be ignorant—and free—in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be.”  A visit to the nation’s capital is a potent antidote to what Jefferson feared—and by learning our history and observing your government at work you play a vital role in ensuring that our past is not lost to apathy or the careless malaise of a cursory grasp of history. 

Think of it this way: the countless North Carolinians who will visit Washington this year are, in a way, performing a civic duty by ensuring that knowledge of government and American history is not forgotten. 

That’s why it’s always a pleasure to encounter an eager visitor who can’t seem to get enough of the story behind the House Chamber or the chiseled figures lining Statuary Hall. 

If you have a trip to Washington in the works you can count on my office’s help in arranging a visit to some of Washington, DC’s most important sites.  You can request a tour of the White House or a tour of the Capitol through my office.  We can also help arrange for you to visit the House gallery, which is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many constituents. 

The simplest way to get in touch and learn more about how my office can help you when you visit is to check out my website at www.foxx.house.gov/tours.  There you can request tours of the White House, Capitol and House Gallery and get information on visiting Washington, DC.

Helping you plan a visit to DC is just a small part of how my office can help you.  So don’t hesitate to get in touch, even if you don’t have a trip in the works.  We can also help you navigate the federal bureaucracy, apply for federal grants and deal with the IRS or the Social Security Administration.  Click on www.foxx.house.gov/casework to learn how we can help you and no matter where you travels take you this summer I hope you have a safe and memorable season.