Somewhere, Sen. Patrick Leahy is licking his chops.

The Vermont Democrat, an avid fan of home state ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s, no doubt has today marked on his calendar (you know, along with investigate torture memos) as Free Cone Day.

The chain is giving away free scoops from noon until 8 p.m. at its locations nationwide for its 31st annual cone giveaway day.

[IMGCAP(1)]And here’s a somewhat-plausible cover story for Hill staffers who want to take a field trip to one of the nearby locations to take advantage of the offer: The do-gooder company is debuting a new flavor, Chocolate Macadamia, which features fair-trade vanilla and chocolate and sustainably harvested nuts.

Now that’s a cause you can raise a cone to.

Can’t get enough HOH? Get a midday dose of fun and gossip with HOH’s One-Minute Recess, delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up here — because everyone deserves more recess.