This year, doing the business of the People's House was, at best, a struggle. It's well-known that 2013 was, legislatively, the least productive session in congressional history. Leaders strained to get to 218 — a majority in the 435-seat House (in case you had no idea where the blog name came from). And there were some pretty notable news stories as a result of all this congressional dysfunction. But as painful as the year was for members, covering the House was a pleasure, one which we here at 218 only had the honor of doing for about half the year. In that short time, 218 — or "Goppers," as we were formerly known, which rhymes with "Whoppers," for all you still wondering about that — had more than a few favorite stories. Among the labors of love, there was a piece about the 10 Republicans who could one day be speaker, a story on an internal August playbook that went out to House Republicans telling them to profess how they were fighting Washington, and a piece (in response to his "calves the size of cantaloupes" comment) asking the question: How do you solve a problem like Steve King? (more…)
