“Freedom must involve unpredictability”
– Author, American historian and professor Dr. Timothy Snyder
from his 2024 book, On Freedom

A popular concept attributed to several motivational influences is “Step outside of your comfort zone. It’s where the magic happens.” The magic is what happened to me on September 25, 2025. Several weeks before, a friend and fellow organizer in Portland, Oregon, Timur Endur, sent this email to his contacts:

“I wanted to extend the invite to the Karaoke Night & Birthday Bash for my good friend (Oregon) state senator Khanh Pham. Senator Pham has been a leading voice for climate action, transportation & housing in the state legislature. I’m a co-host for the event and hope you’ll join me at Mekong Bistro for the event later this month!”

I had lunch with Timur last winter. I met him when he ran for Portland City Council in 2024. I trusted his judgement that this would be a fun party to attend. Even more, I saw Senator Pham post a video from a her previous bash karaoke fundraiser of a mutual friend, KB Mercer, joyfully dancing to the music at this annual party. Sadly, this KB passed away a few days in September 2024. After I watched that video of my friend dancing, I wanted to attend this lively karaoke birthday bash when it would occur in 2025.

The ironic part was Senator Pham and I got off to a rocky start when I met her on January 7, 2021 as part of my climate organizing. I requested a lobby meeting in September 2020 when she ran to be elected as a Representative to the Oregon Legislature in that November election. At that time, I volunteered with Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL). As part of my activism with CCL, I met with Oregon legislators to ask them to endorse CCL’s federal carbon pricing bill, the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act H.R. 763. I succeeded in persuading over 30 Oregon legislators to endorse that Congressional bill, including then House Speaker Tina Kotek.

In a lobby meeting with Oregon Representative Tiffiny Mitchell in September 2020, she offered to introduce into the Oregon Legislature a state resolution supporting the federal carbon pricing bill. Rep. Mitchell did not run for re-election in November 2020. She requested Senator Michael Dembrow to introduce this resolution on the Senate floor on February 4, 2021. The resolution became known as Senate Joint Memorial 5 or SJM 5. It had 10 legislative sponsors when it was introduced. I hoped Representative Pham could be the 11th.

I was impressed with Khanh Pham’s background as a community organizer in Portland. She was a founding leader and spokesperson for the groundbreaking Portland Clean Energy Fund Initiative, which was successfully passed in November 2018 by a 2 to 1 margin. It won in large part due to a to a broad coalition spanning environmental organizations, environmental justice groups, communities of color, labor, small businesses and neighborhood associations.

Then she helped start the Oregon Just Transition Alliance, which undertook a statewide listening tour to ask frontline communities what kind of Green New Deal made sense for them. When she won her state representative seat in November 2020, she was the first Vietnamese American elected to the Oregon Legislature. With her strong progressive and climate advocacy background, I hoped she would be an ally in my effort to get SJM 5 passed in the Oregon Legislature.

Our January 7, 2021 meeting felt like a disaster. She immediately refused to support the climate resolution I was advocating. She shared her biggest frustration that advocates of carbon pricing seem to emphasize it to a point that it sucks the oxygen out of the room for other climate solutions. When I humbly pleaded with her that most economists support carbon pricing to tackle climate change, she looked at me like I was mansplaining to her. Of the hundreds of legislative and Congressional lobby meetings I had over the last 11 years, it felt like my worst meeting of all. She acted openly hostile to me. I felt crushed.

I had to work around her opposition to try to organize to get SJM 5 passed in the Oregon Legislature. I almost succeeded. It passed out of the Oregon Senate on April 7th by a vote of 23 to 5, with 6 Republican Senators voting in support. SJM 5 ended up with 30 House sponsors, including 7 Republicans. However, the resolution died in June 2021 when House Majority Leader Barbara Smith Warner refused to allow it to have a hearing in the Rules Committee.

It was a heartbreaking loss for me. Even worse, at a town hall at the end of the session, Representative Pham referred to SJM 5 as a ‘waste of time.’ That criticism stung badly.

In the years afterwards, a thaw started to happen as we on the same side working on many climate bills. She had a fundraiser and forum on democracy that I helped organize in August 2024. She texted me to thank me for assisting in co-hosting the event. I attended two more of her community fundraising events in December 2024 and January 2025 because I believed she was one of the strongest climate champions in the Oregon Legislature.

Thus, I was in the habit of attending her fundraising events when Timur sent me the email in early September to coax me to attend her birthday fundraiser on September 25, 2025. The birthday fundraiser would center around karaoke. I was always intrigued by karaoke, but I had never tried it. I RSVPed for this event soon after the email from Timur.

On September 25th, my wife decided at the last minute she would join me for this fundraiser. I was thrilled to have her with me. We were some of the first guests to arrive to the party. Senator Pham personally greeted all the guests after they signed in at the check in table. She was surprised to see me there. She inquired what brought me to the party.

I responded I saw how much fun our friend KB Mercer had dancing at Khanh’s birthday party from video Khanh posted after KB passed away. We both sighed with sadness that our mutual friend was no longer around. Her eyes then lit up with joy as she remembered KB dancing and bringing so much zeal to her previous birthday fundraiser. Senator Pham then asked if she could give me a hug, which I gladly allowed. She was pleased I was there.

Tanya and I enjoyed the tasty assortments of Vietnamese food available in this restaurant that was solely booked for Khanh’s party that evening. I mingled with friends while Tanya and I ate dinner. The party organizers announced they were looking for people to sign up for the karaoke. I decided on the spot to sign up on the list to perform a karaoke song. As I put my name on the list, I wrote down the song I wanted to sing, “September” by Earth Wind and Fire.

A couple of years ago, I learned in a National Public Radio (NPR) story that song was one of the most popular played songs in wedding receptions in the U.S. I made sure that song played at my wedding reception in November 2015. According to that NPR article, the song “September” ‘made its way into TV shows, commercials, sporting events and video games. In 2008, it played at both the Republican and Democratic national conventions. Taylor Swift recorded a lightly countrified cover in 2018.’

I knew I could not go wrong with that song. I then ran into Timur at the party. We were happy to see each other. It was the first time we talked since having coffee months before. I told him I signed up to sing karaoke. Even more, I wanted him on stage with me since he encouraged me to come to the party. Timur was cautious about my request at first. He asked me what song.

I replied, “’September’ by Earth, Wind, and Fire.”

He hesitated, “I don’t think I know that song. However, if you can get others to join us on stage, I will join you on stage.”

“Deal!” I remarked. “You know that song. You probably have heard it. It’s one of the most popular dance songs of all time. I will get you the lyrics to sing along.”

“Ok,” he responded, “I will see you on stage when the time comes.”

As the karaoke party progressed, I became nervous in the back of the room since I never performed karaoke before. I internally wondered what I signed myself up to do. At the same time, everyone on stage were full of joy singing karaoke. Plus, the dance floor had many of the many of the attendees cheerfully dancing to the songs. 

I then heard this announcement, “Next up to perform Karaoke is Brian Ettling performing ‘September’ by Earth, Wind, and Fire.” 

Gulp! It was showtime. I had a few butterflies in my stomach like it was the first day of school. 

I walked on the stage with Timur joining me. We convinced a middle aged Asian American woman to sing with us. Plus, a 12-year-old girl joined us on stage. 

The music started up. Most of the folks sitting in their chairs were drawn to the dance floor by the upbeat rhythms and melody. Senator Pham was on the dance floor blissfully moving to the song. I started singing the song with Timur and the others joining me. The people on the dance floor had so much fun dancing that they did not know how good or bad my singing was. The song was mostly easy to sing along. I even improvised some song lyrics. 

I was back on stage and loving it. I used to be the center of attention when I gave ranger talks working in the national parks from 1998 to 2017. I acted in plays in college. I have given over 200 climate change talks as a public speaker in 12 U.S. states from 2011 to 2019. However, I fell out of habit giving public presentations in 2020 when the COVID pandemic lockdowns happened. I have done very little public speeches since then. 

I forgotten how much I love being on stage. My wife Tanya smiled with pride as she took photos of me performing the song. I was back in my element! As each song concluded, the karaoke singers were encouraged to express birthday wishes to Khanh Pham. 

When the song was over, I gladly wished Senator Pham a happy birthday on the microphone and thanked her for being one of the strongest climate champions in the Oregon Legislature. 

She was delighted to hear my words. Later, she thanked Tanya and me for coming to her party when we decided it was time to head home. I had the time of my life performing karaoke at that party. I want to do that again sometime. I want to find another way to be on stage again!  

We are living in a time when American democracy is in danger. Experts on authoritarianism, like Dr. Timothy Snyder, advise us to be unpredictable as individuals to help save our democracy. Well, I believe I had a fantastic time being unpredictable singing karaoke at a public fundraiser for a past political adversary now friend in September 2025.  

This is the third and final part of my blog about my trip to Washington D.C. July 19-23, 2023. The first part focused on my arrival in Washington D.C, the friends I stayed with in Takoma Park, touring the National Archives and Smithsonian National Museum of American History, and the Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) Conference to prepare for the Congressional Lobby Day.

Part 2 is an account of my experience lobbying on Congressional Offices on July 22nd.
Part 3 (below) is my recollection of the evening guided tour of the U.S. Capitol Building led by Congresswoman Val Hoyle.

Invitation for a Guided Tour of the U.S. Capitol led by Congresswoman Val Hoyle

For this July 22, 2025 CCL Congressional Lobby Day, had something different planned for Oregon CCL volunteers. Teresa Welch from Corvallis, OR asked her member of Congress, Representative Val Hoyle, to give a tour of the U.S. Capitol to the Oregon CCL delegation. Daniela Brod, Oregon CCL state co-coordinator, sent this email the day before on July 21st:

“Hello Oregonians in DC-
We have just been presented the opportunity to take a tour of the Capitol building guided by Rep. Val Hoyle, Oregon’s Representative for the 4th District. We do not know the EXACT timing at this point, but we hear it will be tomorrow, Tuesday July 22nd, ‘Evening’.
I assume this will be around 5 or 6pm. Don’t know though.
Please respond here if you are interested with a ‘YES’”

I immediately responded with “Yes! Please RSVP me!”

Teresa then sent out an email on the morning of the July 22nd lobby day:

“Good morning,
For those of you going on tonight’s tour of the Capitol with Rep. Hoyle, here is what you need to know.
The tour will begin at 7pm from Rep. Hoyle’s office (1620 Longworth).
Be sure you are in the building BEFORE 7pm, as the office buildings close to the public at 7pm. If you are late, you’ll need to contact one of your group who is already in Rep. Hoyle’s office, and they will have to ask Rep. Hoyle to come down and escort you inside.
The tour will last about two hours. Wear comfortable walking shoes. Restrooms are available along the route.
Have fun!”

Even with the normal excitement of the CCL photo on the Capitol steps and the Congressional lobby meetings, I felt the tug of anticipation for this Capitol tour with Rep. Hoyle at 7 pm.

After I finished my lobby meetings around 4:30 pm, I met up with two Oregon CCL friends. We walked to a nearby pizzeria called We, the Pizza to order slices of pizza before the evening tour. We ate our pizza on tables outside in front of the restaurant. It was a typical Washington, D.C. humid July day. But, not too hot that we could relax eating outside while the traffic and local D.C. pedestrians walked by us, with some stopping inside to order and pick up their pizzas.

We then walked back over the House Congressional Offices Buildings to go to Rep. Hoyle’s office in the Longworth House Office Building on the 6th floor. We arrived in front of her office around 6:30 pm. Others from the Oregon CCL team joined us inside her office around 6:45 pm. As we waited patiently, a gentleman from New York City joined us who was a survivor of the 9/11 attacks. Like the CCL advocates, he lobbied Congressional offices that day, but he advocated for federal funding for 9/11 survivors. He was friendly and graciously answered my questions about his memories of experiencing 9/11 in New York City. He told us that Rep. Val Hoyle struck up a conversation with him that day. She then invited him on this U.S. Capitol tour that evening.

As we waited inside the office, a large group from Ocean Spray Cranberries stood outside. Rep. Hoyle also invited them on the tour. Around 7 pm, Rep. Hoyle came out of her office delighted to start this U.S. Capitol Tour with everyone assembled. Included in this group, I met a middle-aged woman who was a lifelong best friend of Val Hoyle. Both of them grew up in Nashua, New Hampshire. Her childhood friend stayed in New England while Val moved to Oregon decades ago. They stayed close. Her friend was so excited when Val was elected to Congress since she could see her more often on the east coast.

Guided Tour of the U.S. Capitol Building led by Congresswoman Val Hoyle

At the beginning of the tour, Rep. Hoyle disclosed she likes giving these tours of the U.S. Capitol herself. She informed us the Republican House members tend to give the tours more than their Democratic colleagues. However, more Democratic members see the value of giving these U.S. Capitol tours themselves, instead of delegating them to staff or the Capitol Tour Guides, as a great way to connect with constituents and the public. In fact, Rep. Hoyle ran into one of her GOP colleagues leading a tour of the Capitol while we were in the middle of our tour. They were friendly and easy going briefly chatting with each other. They did not display the animosity that you see GOP and Democratic members of Congress acting towards each other on TV.

This tour lasted over 2 hours with Rep. Hoyle narrating the entire tour. She had some notes with her, but she mostly spoke without her notes with all the details she knew about the U.S. Capitol Building. She started the tour by showing us the artwork in the Cannon Tunnel, a curved tunnel connecting the House Cannon Office Building to the U.S. Capitol. Along one of the walls is displayed paintings from high school students across the U.S. Each state and territory is allotted two pieces of art. Rep. Hoyle marveled at the artwork remarked that nearly all of it looked like it was created by adults not high school students.

We then stepped into the lower-level visitor lobby of the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center. Just before we entered, we looked up at a glass ceiling with the U.S. Capitol Dome peaking right above us. On either side of the staircases leading into the Capitol Building stood a white 19.5-foot plaster replica of the bronze Statue of Freedom that sits on top of the Capitol Dome. Rep. Hoyle informed us that the statute on top of the U.S. Capitol weighs almost 8 tons.

The plaster statue was inspiring to see up close. It was a Romanesque looking woman with feathers on top of her head wearing robes. Her right-hand holds handle upon of a sheathed sword wrapped in a scarf. Her left hand she hangs onto a laurel wreath of victory and the shield of the United States with 13 stripes.

Congresswoman Hoyle then wanted us to notice the 18 statues placed around the Visitor Center. These 18 statues are part of the National Statuary Hall Collection. The legislatures of each U.S. state and the District of Columbia selected two statues of noted individuals from their state to be displayed throughout the Capitol. In the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center, I took photos and admired the bronze statues of Helen Keller from Alabama, Sakakawea from North Dakota, Kamehameha I from Hawaii, Frederick Douglas from Washington D.C, John I “Jack” Swigert, Jr. from Colorado, and Johnny Cash from Arkansas. Rep. Hoyle particularly liked the Johnny Cash statue. She proclaimed, ‘If Johnny Cash was from Oregon, we would have the Johnny Cash statue.”

We next entered the area known as the Capitol Crypt. It is the spaced of vaulted columns located one level below the Capitol Rotunda. It is long been referred to as the Crypt because it looks like areas in churches, which were often used for chapels and tombs. Directly beneath the Crypt is a spot where Congress intended to place the remains of George and Martha Washington. However, his last will stipulated his desire to be buried at home at Mount Vernon. Thus, No one was buried in the Capitol.

Even though the name, the crypt, makes it sound dreary and dark, this area was well lit with plenty of lighting, plus light grey marble floors and walls. It contained more state designated statues such as Billy Graham for North Carolina, John C. Calhoun for South Carolina, and Samuel Adams for Massachusetts. It held a large white stone bust of Abraham Lincoln and respected international leaders who defended freedom, such as Winston Churchill and Václav Havel former President, author, poet, playwright and dissident of Czechoslovakia. I admired all the stone statues and artwork on display in the U.S. Capitol Building. I spent a lot of time on the tour gazing at the artwork. The U.S. Capitol is a shrine to American democracy, but also a temple of sacred art showcasing the best of the American democracy ideal.

The Shadow of the January 6, 2021 Insurrection that was felt during the Capitol Tour

We turned a corner from the Crypt and saw a sign for the exterior area for the office of Speaker of the House Mike Johnson. This is where the tour of the U.S. Capitol became a bit frightening and eerie for me. I remember the news reports of the violent January 6th insurrectionists smashing that same sign for Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. When the rioters smashed that sign, they smashed a piece of my heart for my reverence for American democracy.

We then went upstairs to be in the Capitol Rotunda area. I have vivid memories of the news stories with the January 6th insurrectionists walking through the Rotunda area unsure what to do. I was memorized by the life size paintings on the curved walls depicting the American Revolution and early colonial history. It was glorious to see the ceiling painting “The Apotheosis of Washington” in the ceiling or eye of the Rotunda painted by Constantino Brumidi in 1865. It shows George Washington ascending to the heavens in glory, surrounded by female figures representing Liberty and Victory/Fame. Back on the floor level, I was in awe seeing the statues of 8 Presidents Thomas Jefferson, Ulysses S. Grant, Dwight Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, Gerald Ford, Andrew Jackson, James Garfield, and Harry Truman spaced around the Rotunda. In addition, the Rotunda had a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. sculpture and the Portrait Monument to the women’s rights suffragettes Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony.

As I was enthralled seeing all this artwork standing in the rotunda, I was sad to think about the January 6th insurrectionists possibly damaging this sacred art representing American history. It made me angry to think Donald Trump instigated the insurrection. Mobs of people responded to his call by violently invading the Capitol Building and crowding into the Rotunda. It was later revealed that the rioters caused curators to seek $25,000 to repair artworks damaged in U.S. Capitol Attack. Days after the January 6th insurrection, curators found fine residue that could wreak long-lasting damage on some of the fragile historical busts I saw, such as Speaker Champ Clark, Speaker Joe Cannon, and a statue of Thomas Jefferson. January 6th taught us that democracy is as delicate and fragile as the majestic Capitol artwork. In February 2021, the Architect of the Capitol outlined $30 million in damages from the Pro-Trump riot.

It felt creepy that Trump was inaugurated as President inside the Rotunda just months before on January 20th. That same month, former President Jimmy Carter lay in state in the Rotunda less than two weeks before Trump was sworn in President there. So much history in that room. In addition, I spotted a large bronze plaque dedicated:

“IN MEMORY OF
THE PASSENGERS AND CREW OF UNITED AIRLINES FLIGHT 93,
WHOSE BRAVE SACRAFICE ON SEPTEMBER 11, 2001,

NOT ONLY SAVED COUNTLESS LIVES
BUT MAY HAVE SAVED THE U.S. CAPITOL FROM DESTRUCTION”

This plaque then lists the passengers and crew of flight 93. Overall, it was a joyful experience to tour the Capitol Building led by Rep. Val Hoyle. However, this plaque was a reminder of those who fought and sacrificed their lives to defend our nation and the central symbol of our democracy, the U.S. Capitol Building.

A highlight of the tour was standing on the floor of the House Chamber, also known as the “Hall of the House of Representatives.” The room looked and felt smaller than all the times I saw it on TV for the President’s State of the Union Address and other Congressional proceedings. It is such a sacred space that the security guard insisted that we all had to leave our cell phones and cameras outside the chamber in the Speaker’s Lobby. It was by the glass doors that I felt more sadness. I was standing by the spot where a U.S. Capitol Police Officer fatally shot Ashli Babbitt on January 6th. The United States Attorney’s Office of the District of Columbia investigation later concluded that the Police Officer did not commit any violations when he reasonably believed “it was necessary to do so in self-defense or in defense of the Members of Congress and others evacuating the House Chamber.”

Ashli Babbitt was part of the riot mob attempting to storm into the House Chamber as Congress counted the Electoral College votes to certify that Joe Biden won the Presidency over Donald Trump. Members of Congress were still in the U.S. House Chamber as rioters attempted to enter the Speaker’s Chamber and then the Chamber to possibly harm them.

It was a heartbreaking tragedy that Ashli Babbitt lost her life refusing to accept Joe Biden won the 2020 election. Instead, she believed the Big Lie that Donald Trump won the 2020 election, but it was stolen from him. She then participated in the January 6th insurrection to try to overturn the results of a free and fair election. She could still be alive today if she had made different life choices in January 2021. Trump asked the mob, including Ashli Babbitt, to come to Washington, D.C. on January 6th. Ashli was a responsible adult accountable for her own actions. Yet, Trump urging her and thousands of others to come to Washington, D.C. to protest the election results that ultimately caused the loss of her life. I quietly pointed out the spot where Ashli Babbitt died to a couple of CCL Oregon friends who were also on the tour. They did not know what to say when I noted that bit of history.

I saw more reminders of January 6th during the tour. I saw a window that looks out into an outside porch that was probably broken and breach by the January 6th insurrectionists. I recognized from TV some of the hallways where the rioters walked through in mass and where the video footage showed on January 6th where members of Congress ran to escape. Rep. Hoyle did a wonderful job leading the tour and sharing many historical tidbits along the way. However, I finally had to ask her near the end of the tour if she knew much about the damage from the January 6th attacks. She stated she did not have any information. To her credit, she was first elected to Congress in November 2022 and did not assume office until January 2023. Thus, she did not have any comments or have any interest to say anything about January 6th.

The dark shadow of January 6th was present for those with searing memories of seeing it on TV, like me. We cannot forget the 5 members of the U.S. Capitol Police lost their lives, plus 140 Officers were injured, defending the Capitol that day from the insurrection. Besides January 6th, I felt the U.S. Capitol had not fully reckoned with its past by continuing to have statues of proslavery individuals such as John C. Calhoun and Sam Houston, and a statue to Jefferson Davis, who served as President of the Confederancy during the Civil War. In 2020, after the killing of George Floyd, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called for the removal of statues associated with the Confederancy. She believed the statues, donated by states, pay “homage to hate, not heritage.”

Highlights of the Artwork and History of the Guided Tour of the U.S. Capitol

Even with the U.S. Capitol showing the shortcomings of recent and distant U.S. history, I was amazed by so much I saw during the tour. It felt sublime for me to stand in National Statuary Hall, the meeting place of the U.S. House of Representatives for nearly 50 years (1807–1857). This was the room where Abraham Lincoln served as a member of Congress from Illinois for a single term from 1847 to 1849. With its shiny white and black checkered marbled floor, grey glistening marbled columns with red satin curtains with gold edges draped behind the columns. Standing above was a curved bright white ceiling with gold coffered squares evenly placed to give it a more regal look. Even placed were statues from the states giving Statuary Hall its name. In this room, I liked seeing the statues of Civil Rights Leader Daisy Lee Gatson Bates, Robert Fulton, Amelia Earhart, Chief Standing Bear, Rosa Parks, and Barry Goldwater.

After we walked through Statuary Hall, Rep. Hoyle next showed us the old the Speaker’s Room of the U.S. Capitol. It is the room where former President and then Representative John Quincy Adams died on February 23, 1848. Today, it is known as the Lindy Claiborne Boggs Congressional Women’s Reading Room. Since 1962, the suite is exclusively used by the Congresswomen of the House. Women of both political parties use this room. Head shot photos of all the female members of Congress greeted us as we entered this room.

Rep. Hoyle then led us to a hallway that had busts of former Vice Presidents, such as Richard “Dick” Cheney and Albert Gore, Jr. It was a joyful moment for me to see the bust of Al Gore. I finally saw a bust or statue of a historical figure in the U.S. Capitol of someone I had met. It was one of the highlights of my life meeting and getting my photo with former Vice President Al Gore at the Climate Reality Cedar Rapids Training in May 2015.

When I saw the Academy Award winning documentary about Al Gore, An Inconvenient Truth, at the movie theatre in Ashland, Oregon in 2006, it inspired me to become a climate activist and organizer. I created this website, Climatechangecomedian.com in 2010. I started this blog in February 2011. I gave my first climate change evening program as a park ranger at Crater Lake National Park in August 2011. I joined CCL in May 2012. A few months later, I attended a Climate Reality Project Training led by Al Gore in San Francisco, CA in August 2012. In a sense, I was at the Capitol attending this tour because Al Gore inspired me to get involved in the climate movement and participate in CCL Congressional Lobby Days. His bust was in the Capitol because of his work as Vice President of the United States from 1993-2001. I will always be grateful to him for inspiring me and countless others to become active in the climate movement.

Another hallway had paintings commemorating the first people of color to service in Congress, such as Joseph Rainey – the first African American sworn into Congress in 1870, Patsy Takemoto Mink – the first woman of color and first Asian American woman elected to Congress in 1964, and Shirley Chisholm – the first African American woman elected to Congress in 1968.

After seeing all these hallways, rooms, and artwork in the U.S. Capitol, it was time to head back to Rep. Hoyle’s office to pick up my backpack and suit jacket. As I left Rep. Hoyle’s office, I thanked her for the tour, and she posed for selfie photo with me. I then asked her if she would be seeing my Rep. Maxine Dexter soon. She responded yes because they serve together on the House Committee on Natural Resources. I then inquired if she could thank Maxine for her time meeting with our group of volunteers earlier that day.

Rep. Hoyle then smiled and shot back sarcastically, “Her time!”

I then felt embarrassed and sheepishly replied, “Of course, I really appreciate for your time to give this tour this evening.”

Even though I flubbed badly this interaction with Congresswoman Hoyle, I will always be grateful for her time and enthusiasm to be part of her guided tour of the U.S. Capitol building.

I visited all 50 U.S. states and took many public tours of historical buildings, monuments, and national parks. This guided tour of the U.S. Capitol, which is an iconic symbol of American democracy, led by Rep. Val Hoyle, was one of the best public tours I experienced. If you get an opportunity to take a tour of the Capitol Building, especially with a member of Congress, do it!

I then left Rep. Hoyle’s office with some of the other Oregon CCL volunteers. We walked in front of the east side of the U.S. Capitol to head back to the Union Station Metro stop. The U.S. Capitol Dome light up the night with the bright lights shining on it like a beacon light for American ideals on this quiet July evening.

Final thoughts from my Trip to Washington D.C. July 19-23, 2025

My trip to Washington D.C. was completed. It was time to take the D.C. Metro back to Tom and Reena’s house in Tacoma Park, Maryland to visit with them for one last evening. This was my 11th time lobbying in Washington D.C. Each time I lobby there is an unforgettable adventure. I hope to lobby there again, but there’s no guarantees. This trip was probably one of my best lobby experiences with my first face-to-face Washington D.C. lobby meeting with my member of Congress, Rep. Maxine Dexter and the tour of the U.S. Capitol led by Congresswoman Val Hoyle.

The next day, Wednesday July 23rd, I was off to my next escapade. I was flying from Washington D.C. to Cincinnati, Ohio to meet up with my friend Mark Deeter. We then drove to Cedar Point Amusement Park northern Ohio to ride roller coasters on Thursday, July 24th. We then planned to visit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio on Friday, July 25th, before I headed back to Portland to reunite with my wife Tanya on July 26th.

Is it still worth it to travel to Washington D.C. to lobby for climate action in the era of Donald Trump? My response is ABSOLUTELY!

This is the second part of my blog about my trip to Washington D.C. July 19-23, 2023. Part 1 focused on my arrival in Washington D.C, the friends I stayed with in Takoma Park, touring the National Archives and Smithsonian National Museum of American History, and the Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) Conference to prepare for the Congressional Lobby Day.

Part 2 (below) is about my experience lobbying on Congressional Offices on Capitol Hill.
Part 3 is my recollection of the evening guided tour inside the U.S. Capitol Building led by Congresswoman Val Hoyle.

The CCL group photo on the Capitol Steps at 8 am in the morning

These are long days on lobbying on Capitol Hill. I set my alarm to wake me up around 5:30 am so I could shower, put on my dress business suit, and eat a good breakfast. I needed to leave the house where I stayed by 7 am to walk or see if I could catch the bus to Takoma Park DC Metro station to head towards the U.S. Capitol Building. I reached the Union Station Metro stop by 7:40 am. The U.S. Capitol Building Rotunda Dome looks like a lighthouse beacon greeting us coming up from the escalators at Union Station. As soon as I left Union Station, I found myself in the middle of a throng of CCL volunteers, old friends and new, in our best business suits happy to see each other and eager to lobby for the day.

All of us CCL volunteers and staff needed to be there before 8 am sharp to be in the CCL group photo of around 800 volunteers on the northeast U.S. Capitol Building Steps that would be lobbying Congressional Offices that day. We created a sea of people covering and occupying the lower half northeast Capitol Building Steps. I participated in over 10 of these lobby photos from previous CCL Congressional Lobby days. It was a motivating way to start the day. In past years, the CCL volunteers break out into singing “This Land Is Your Land” with our excitement of being together for the traditional big group photo on the Capitol steps.

After CCL staff took the group photo, I mingled with old and new CCL friends. For this lobby day, I volunteered to be in CCL publicity photos of volunteers talking to each other with the Capitol Dome in the photo background. They mostly needed young women and people of color front and center in the photos. At the same time, as 57-year-old white male, it was still helpful for CCL for me to be in the background of some of the potential publicity shots.

My first lobby meeting was at 10 am at the Hart Senate Office Building with staff of Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon. The Hart Office Building is basically two city blocks from the Capitol building, only about a 2-minute walk. After the publicity photos wrapped up, I had plenty of time to text and call my mom, my niece, and my wife Tanya to let them know I was by the U.S. Capitol Building getting ready to lobby Congressional Offices for the day. I took my traditional selfie photos on lobby day in my dress suit with the U.S. Capitol Dome behind my left shoulder. It was a beautiful clear summer day in Washington, D.C, and it was muggy and humid. Too hot to wear a suit jacket outside, except to be seen with it in photos. I chose to carry my jacket on my arm so I would not sweat as much before my Congressional lobby meetings.

The CCL Lobby Meeting with Staff of U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley

After chatting with various CCL friends in front of the Capitol Building, I started walking to make it in plenty of time to my 10 am Senate lobby meeting. I entered the Russell Senate Building, located across the street from the north side of the Capitol. The bad news is that it takes a couple of minutes to go through an airport like metal detector screening to enter inside any Congressional Building. All metal must be out of one’s pockets, such as keys, business card cases, wallet with coins, etc. The good news is that all the Senate Office Buildings on the Senate side connect with each other and the House Office Building on the House side all connect with below ground tunnels. The tunnels are open for anyone to use, not just members of Congress. They are very helpful shortcuts to get around the Senate and House Office Building, without going through the airport like security check points each time.

I made it to the front of Senator Jeff Merkley’s office around 9:30 am. I hate being late or last minute to any of these lobby meetings. Arriving early gave me plenty of time to relax until the rest of the CCL lobby team arrived between 9:45 to 9:50 am. We went into the Senator’s office reception area a few minutes before 10 am to announce we arrived for our 10 am scheduled lobby meeting. We were then led into a conference room to talk with Senator Merkley’s staff: Ben Schreiber, Director of Climate and Energy, and Kat Abrams, Legislative Correspondent.

CCL trains it volunteers to keep anything said by members of Congress and their staff confidential to build trust and a positive working relationship. I will say all the CCL participants were happy with the outcome of the meeting. We felt like we had a great exchange of ideas and insights from Ben and Kat. We learned a lot hearing Senator Merkley’s staff perspectives on the CCL priorities of permitting reform and the Fix Our Forests Act.

I started the meeting with an appreciation for Senator Merkley for all he has fought for to try to improve our democracy, especially the 2024 that he wrote Filibustered: How to Fix the Broken Senate and Save America. Ben and Kat were pleased that I brought a copy of the book with me.

I mentioned my dream for the past year since I read the book. I wanted to organize a public event with Senator Merkley, similar to what Portland CCL did on April 18, 2024, for Congressional candidates Maxine Dexter and Susheela Jayapal. At the April 2024 Climate Candidate Forum, Dexter and Jayapal shared their climate change thoughts and priorities if elected to Congress. With Sen. Merkley, I think I would be beneficial to discuss his filibuster book and his thoughts how we can improve American democracy, especially to pass effective climate policies.

Ben offered that I should email him after the meeting, and he would be glad to connect me with the staff in Merkley’s office who are focused on democracy issues. After the lobby meeting, Kat gave me the business cards of Merkley’s staff working on democracy policy. I followed up with reaching out to his staff about organizing such an event with the Senator. I have not heard little from his staff about such an event, but I am going to keep politely asking.

After the meeting, I asked if we could get a group photo with Ben, Kat, and the CCL volunteers. Ben and Kat readily agreed to be in the photo with us. They walked with the CCL volunteers to the hallway outside Senator Merkley’s office to be part of a group photo. Ben and Kat then chatted with us outside of Senator Merkley’s office for another 5 to 10 minutes. Ben was gracious to converse more about his energy and climate knowledge with his vast expertise serving as the Director of Climate and Energy for several years for Senator Merkley.

In my 10 years of lobbying for CCL and attending 11 CCL conferences & Capitol Hill Lobby Days, I never saw legislative staff hang out with CCL volunteers for that length of time after the official meeting to continue the conversation. If they were not called back into the office for another meeting, I had the impression that Ben and Kat would have talked with us longer, possibly even gone out for coffee with us. From his generous use of time and willingness to extend the interaction well beyond the allotted meeting time, we had the impression that Ben and Kat enjoyed meeting with our group of CCL volunteers for the July 22nd CCL Lobby Day on Capitol Hill.

A Chance Encounter with Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici from Oregon

After the meeting lobby meeting with Senator Merkley’s staff, I left the Senate Office Buildings to walk in front of the Supreme Court Building and the east side of the U.S. Capitol Building around 11:15 am to head to the U.S. House Congressional Offices for my three afternoon meetings. The next meeting I had was with my Representative Maxine Dexter and her staff at her office at the Longworth House Office Building at 1 pm. I made it through the security checkpoint around 11:25 am, with plenty of time to eat lunch and get ready for the 1 pm meeting.

A fascinating part of lobbying on Congressional Offices on Capitol Hill is you might just inadvertently interact with a member of Congress as they are passing in the hallway. In June 2024, I got to say hello and take a selfie with Congressman Jamie Raskin. In June 2023, I said hello to Senators Ted Cruz and John Kennedy in the hallway on the Senate side. They were both lost in their thoughts and had no interest to say hello to me.

After I entered Longworth, I opted to familiarize myself with the exact location of Rep. Dexter’s office so I would know exactly where to go for the 1 pm meeting. As I took the stairs up to find her office, I saw someone familiar walking down the steps with a group of staff. It was Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici, who also represents Portland Oregon in Congress. She walked right past and then immediately turned around to point at me to say, “You look familiar.”

I responded, “I am Brian Ettling from northeast Portland, Oregon. Like you, I was at Congressman Earl Blumenauer’s retirement party last December. We have both attended various events in Portland over the years. I am here today as a volunteer with Citizens’ Climate Lobby.”

She replied, “We look forward to our meeting with you later on today.”

She then continued briskly walking with her staff to reach some destination. I didn’t have time to respond that I was not assigned to this CCL lobby meeting. However, I was thrilled that Representative Bonamici seemed to somehow recognize me.

Lunch at a Congressional Office Building and waiting for the 1 pm lobby meeting

Representative Dexter’s office was just a few feet away from my friendly interaction with Rep. Bonamici. After I was satisfied I knew the location of the office, I went down to the basement cafeteria to have lunch. The Congressional Cafeterias have the best food of any school, corporate, or organizational cafeteria I have seen. You can find most kinds of food that you are craving on any day, such as pizza, Mexican food, Asian food, a sprawling salad bar, various soups, made to order sandwiches, many different types of desserts, etc.

It was around noon, so the cafeteria was packed with people. There were business and industry lobbyists, Congressional staff, citizen volunteer lobbyists from other advocacy organizations, and CCL volunteers eating at several tables throughout the cafeteria. The CCLers were easy to spot since they all wore their white circular Citizens’ Climate lobby buttons. They tended to sit together to do last minute planning for their next lobby meeting. Televisions monitors mounted on the walls close to the ceiling had CNN and Fox News Channels on with the sound off. It was a sobering reminder that decisions made here daily directly impacts the up-to-the-minute news.

Around 12:40 pm, I headed up the two flights up steps to be outside of Rep. Maxine Dexter’s office to greet my team to assemble outside the office around 12:50 pm. All of us wanted to be in front of the office at least 10 minutes before the scheduled meeting at 1 pm to converse about any last-minute details. The outer door to Rep. Dexter’s Congressional Office was open and we could see the receptionist right by the door.

I shepherded my lobby team to a side corridor away from where the office staff might hear us. Once the group gathered, I mistakenly advised them that this was scheduled to be a face-to-face meeting with Rep. Dexter. However, my experience lobbying for the last 10 years for CCL in Washington D.C. is that members of Congress always run into last minute meetings and schedule changes that prevents a direct meeting with CCL. Thus, I gave it a very low probability that she would meet with us. I tried to stress again like in the prep meeting the day before to listen carefully to the staff’s responses to our questions, especially their sticking points and objections, to make sure they feel fully heard before we respond to our cherished talking points. Everyone had a nervous excitement, especially me for this meeting to start and be successful.

CCL Lobby Meeting with my Congresswoman Maxine Dexter and her staff

Right before 1 pm, we walked inside Rep. Dexter’s Congressional Office to the reception area. We introduced ourselves from CCL and stated we had a 1 pm meeting with staff. The receptionist led us to a large circular 8-person table that we all barely fit around. We asked the Energy and Environmental Aide Gillian (Gil) Mead how much time she had scheduled with us. Gil responded, “That depends upon Congresswoman Dexter who will be joining us any moment.”

We barely started our introductions with Gil when Rep. Dexter came into the room from her closed inner office door. She explained that she just finished her quick lunch. Her scheduled happened to change that day and she was eager to join us. I later learned that House Speaker Mike Johnson shut down House for the summer before the official August recess to sideline calls for Epstein transparency.

She gave me and others that she recognized in the room hugs as she went around the table to greet everyone. I was extremely surprised and ecstatic to see Rep. Dexter. I never had a face-to-face meeting with a member of Congress in my 10 years of lobbying with CCL, let alone my member of Congress. Even more, it felt even more of an elevated high wire situation for me since I led this meeting. I want to stress that our conversations in our lobby meetings are confidential to build and maintain trust with members of Congress and their staff.

I will share this: as we talked our CCL priorities such as permitting reform and the Fix Our Forests Act, Congresswoman Dexter came across as acutely knowledgeable, detailed oriented, and with informed well stated opinions on all these subjects. I was there to learn her positions, and she gave us copious verbal information. I had a hard time taking notes because I was still stunned she joined us in this meeting. Our official notetaker could not keep up with all of Rep. Dexter’s comments.

Despite all my preparation with my lobby team to do the CCL methodology of being polite, motivational interviewing, and showing appreciation, gratitude, and respect, the meeting tone shifted. To my horror, someone on our lobby team wanted to argue with Rep. Dexter about the finer points of the Fix Our Forests Act. It felt like I was starting to watch a garden hose lose control and get everyone wet. Congresswoman Dexter responded like a pro. All her years of being a doctor practicing as a lung and critical care physician showed up here. She had an excellent bedside manner and a calming way to relate to people. She asked the spirted person to tell her more why she felt that way. Maxine truly listened to the CCL volunteer in a heartfelt way while I felt mortified that the volunteer let their emotions in the moment get a bit over the top.

I attempted to regain control of the meeting by saying, “I hope we can continue to have an ongoing conversation into the future about permitting reform and the Fix Our Forests Act.”

Rep. Dexter agreed that she would like to do that.

At the beginning of our lobby meeting, I asked Rep. Dexter how much time she had available to meet with us. She replied, “15 minutes.”

At 15 minutes, we had members of our team still asking her questions. I felt it was time to wrap up to respect her time and schedule. Congresswoman Dexter still seemed like she liked answered our questions and engaging with us. However, her staff shifted awkwardly in their chairs and made big pointing gestures at their watches to her that the meeting must end.

I interjected that we did not want to take up more of her time. I squeezed in a quick question of which Republicans she likes to work with across the aisle. She enthusiastically shared names of several GOP House members she worked with on bills. I then asked if we could get a photo with her and she was happy to oblige. We took a group photo in the hallway outside of her office.

Debriefing from the CCL Lobby Meeting with my Representative Maxine Dexter

We then said our goodbyes. I then walked the CCL team down the hallway away from the office where they could not hear our debriefing. I asked the team what they thought about the meeting. They all seemed positive about the meeting. I felt disappointed and peeved that one of our team had a testy exchange with Rep. Dexter over the Fix Our Forests Act, plus I felt we were not respectful enough of their time when they clearly wanted finish up the meeting. As delicately as I could, I suggested that we really should in the future to be cognitive when the member of Congress or staff tell us they have 15 or 30 minutes to work as a team to wrap up the meeting at their 15- or 30-minute deadline. In their excitement, they pushed back to say that Rep. Dexter and her team were still answering our questions at the 15-minute mark. I responded, “Yes, but the staff were all pointing at their watches, plus Rep. Dexter and her staff were shifting in their chairs like they needed to end our meeting.”

The group did not really see my point of view. I was able to get all of them to sign the thank you card. I filled out the rest of the card thanking Congresswoman Dexter and her staff for the meeting and sharing a quick recap of the CCL priorities in the thank you card. I then dropped off the thank you card with Rep. Dexter’s receptionist and headed to my next lobby meeting.

After I dropped of the thank you card, I saw Rep. Dexter pass by me in a hallway walking at a fast pace with her aides trying to get to the next item on her schedule. Part of me wanted to thank her again for the meeting and apologize for over eager volunteer looking to challenge her on the Fix Our Forests Act. Another part of me wanted to just hide and make sure she did not see me since our group took up more than our allotted time, plus she might not have wanted to think about our group anymore that day due to our overly passionate volunteer.

My remaining two CCL lobby meetings of the day

I had two more lobby meetings that afternoon. The next one was with Congresswoman Val Hoyle’s Congressional staff, at 3pm EDT on July 22, Longworth House Office Building. My last meeting of the day was 4 pm Cannon House Office Building, a House Congressional Office Building located next to Longworth connected by basement tunnels.

The meeting at 4 pm was scheduled to be a face-to-face meeting with Congresswoman Andrea Salinas of Oregon. I met Rep. Salinas years ago when she was a representative in the Oregon Legislature. I knocked on doors for her in May 2022 when she ran for Congress. I attended one of her fund raisers in July 2024. At the June 2023 CCL Lobby day, I spotted her in a hallway as she darted from one meeting to another. She recognized me and we briefly chatted about CCL priorities as she briskly walked. She knows me so I looked forward to this face-to-face meeting.

Neither my 3 pm nor 4 pm meetings were face-to-face with the members of Congress. Like all my previous years lobbying on Capitol Hill, the member of Congress could not make it due to scheduling conflicts with other meetings or last minute changes with committee hearings. I was not disappointed Rep. Salinas could not attend because I was still decompressing from the excitement of meeting with my Rep. Dexter earlier that afternoon.

In the last two lobby meetings, the team leader asked me to be the notetaker. This is my least favorite lobbying role. I always try not to be the notetaker if I can help it. I never felt like I could write down quickly all the information that the Congressional staff shares with us. At the same time, I am a team player. I wanted these lobby meetings to succeed. For these last two lobby meetings, we had new volunteers who did not feel comfortable taking notes. I wanted them to have an enjoyable first-time lobbying experience. I know what it involves to take good notes. We strictly needed to capture the opinions, perspectives, and advice of the members of Congress and their staff for the CCL Government Affairs Team. Again, it annoys me that I can never jot down fast enough what the Congressional staff tell us in the lobby meetings.

Both lobby meetings went smoothly and uneventful. The Congressional staff in those meetings were friendly, kind, and enthusiastic to meet with us. Like most Congressional staff I met over the years, they had great people skills. They had a reverence and joy working on Capitol Hill, especially meeting with constituents and citizen lobbyists, like the volunteers with CCL.

Normally, after the lobby meetings, I would walk two blocks from the Congressional Office Buildings to the Capitol South Metro Station. I would then take the DC Metro to the Omni Shoreham for the CCL evening reception. In all my past CCL lobby days, I looked forward to these receptions to see CCL friends one last time and eat tasty hors d’oeuvres. While eating the appetizers, munching on the cupcake desserts, and chatting with friends, we would hear speeches from a member of Congress and new CCL volunteers recounting their adventures lobbying Congressional Offices in Washington D.C. for the very first time.

This lobby day would be different. I found out the day before the Oregon CCL delegation, including me, were invited to be part of a group tour of the U.S. Capitol Building led by Congresswoman Val Hoyle of Oregon on that evening of July 22nd. Stay tuned for my next blog, part 3, to read about my recollection of the this tour.

This year, I recently received sad inquiries from friends when they found out about a trip I took in July. As soon as they hear that I briefly traveled last summer to Washington, D.C. to lobby members of Congress for climate action, they give me that melancholy look like all is lost. They then proceed to ask me: ‘What was it like to lobby in Washington, D.C. in July?’

I share my friends’ concern that President Donald Trump halted all federal actions on climate change this year with his executive actions, budget cuts, and attempting to a stop major clean energy projects. Just recently, Trump called climate change a ‘con job’ at his speech to the United Nations on September 25th. However, I will not let Donald Trump stop me from lobbying to tackle the threat of climate change.

I happily responded, “I had a fantastic time lobbying in Washington, D.C. this summer.”

My friends look at me dumbfounded. I then share why it was a wonderful trip.

Over the past 10 years, I lobbied Congressional offices in Washington, D.C 11 times. I love lobbying on Capitol Hill for climate action. All those trips were fabulous experiences. I blogged about those journeys in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, and 2023. This trip was no different.

Below is the part of my blog about my trip to Washington, D.C. July 19-23, 2023. The first part focused on my arrival in Washington, D.C, the friends I stayed with in Takoma Park, touring the National Archives and Smithsonian National Museum of American History, and checking in at the Citizens’ Climate Lobby Conference to prepare for the Congressional Lobby Day. 

Part 2 is my story lobbying on Congressional Offices on Capitol Hill on July 22, 2025.
Part 3 is my recollection of the evening guided tour of the U.S. Capitol Building led by Congresswoman Val Hoyle on July 22, 2025.    

Arriving in Washington D.C. to see the U.S. Capitol before a thunderstorm

I arrived in Washington, D.C. on late Saturday afternoon, July 11th. I took a five-hour nonstop flight on Alaska Airlines from Portland, Oregon to Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia. The airport is located just south of the National Mall and the Pentagon. Thus, one can get a close bird eye’s view of the Lincoln Memorial, Washington Memorial, the White House and the Capitol Dome greeting you if you are in a window seat as the plane is approaching the runway of this airport. It’s as if the iconic white monuments want to say, ‘Welcome to your Capitol City!’ as the plane descends with its the wheels out make a touchdown on the airport’s runway.

After I deboarded the plane, I headed straight for the DC Metro, the rapid transit public trains that service the Washington, D.C. Metro area. As these commuter trains approach the stations every few minutes, they seem to stretch a long distance with 6 to 8 grey to silver looking train cars. In the underground stations, the loud echo inside the cavernous waiting platforms makes it seems like the trains are roaring like a lion as they meet up with the hordes of local commuters and visiting tourists depending on this public transportation.

When I visit Washington D.C, I stay with friends in Takoma Park, Maryland, which borders upper northeast section of Washington, D.C. On my way to visit them, I always take a temporary diversion to get off at the Union Station Metro stop. I then walk 4 blocks to the U.S. Capitol Building to take a selfie of myself with the white gleaming U.S. Capitol Dome behind me. Immediately after that, I texted my wife and close family members, as well as letting the whole world on social media, that I am excited to be in Washington, D.C. to lobby for climate action.

When I stood near the Capitol Building on July 19th this year, a few lightning bolts landed in the area. It delighted me to be in Washington, D.C. However, the sky was in a different mood as an energic summer thunderstorm would be unleashed any minute. After I took my selfie and texted family that I was standing next the U.S. Capitol Building, I quickly scurried back to the Union Station Metro stop to try to beat the impending downpour of rain.

I made it to the Takoma Park Metro stop where my friends Tom and Reena offered to pick me up in their car. As soon as I departed from the train, it rained hard with a voracity I had not seen in a long time. I texted Tom and Reena 10 minutes before I arrived at the station so they could pull up to the Metro parking lot just as I was getting off the train. When I walked towards the parking lot, they were not there. I had to wait in the access tunnel at the Metro stop because it rained so hard. I texted Tom again. I messaged him on Facebook. I called their landline phone. 20 minutes later with the continual hard rain still coming down, I saw no sign of their car. I dialed the landline again. Tom picked up the phone. He felt embarrassed he had not heard my calls and texts. He quickly scrambled to get to his car and pick me up at the train station.

Staying with my friends Tom and Reena in Takoma Park, Maryland

Traveling to Washington, D.C. to lobby for climate action is expensive, especially flying from the West Coast. Even more, the hotels in the city command a hefty price. I was fortunate that a friend gave me his airline points on Alaska Airlines to fly to Washington, D.C. In the spring, I contacted my friends Tom and Reena to see if I could stay with them. If they were not available for me to stay with them, I would not have been able to afford to travel to Washington, D.C. Fortunately, they responded in the spring that they would be happy for me to stay with them.

Over the years, Tom and Reena became my once-a-year Washington D.C. family. I lost track how many times stayed in their home. I cherish my conversations with them about U.S. politics, Middle East peace (they have advocated on that issue for decades), their involvement with Braver Angels, talking about our families and mutual friends, our travels, the latest news on Washington D.C, and their friendly sweet but food aggressive cat Botang. The time I spend with Tom and Reena in their home is so fulfilling that I stay up too late chatting with them. I burn the candles at both ends because I wake up early for the all-day climate lobbying conference and then the next intense day of lobbying Congressional Offices on Capitol Hill. I joke I should either come to Washington D.C. to just lobby and stay at a convenient hotel or visit Tom and Reena. Unfortunately, I cannot afford to take separate trips.

This time, they offered me to stay in their remodeled studio room above their garage, a separate building from their house. This room looked like a brand new and expensive Air B&B with a sofa that expanded into a bed, bathroom with a shower, kitchen, and kitchen table. The catch was that I had to collapse the bed back to a sofa each day and put all my luggage in the closet. Reena is a licensed couples and family therapist who sees clients during the week in the place where I stayed. Thus, she needed it to look like her professional office and a comfortable place for her clients to attend their therapy sessions. I even teased Reena that it made me seem like she was hosting a fugitive. We both laughed. Our joke was if the police came their door looking for me because of my political lobbying and activism, she could claim that I wasn’t staying there and that she had ‘never heard of me.’

I woke up on that Sunday morning relaxed and refreshed in that room. I went to their nearby co-op to buy food for my breakfasts for my entire stay. I stopped by their house around 11 am to inform them that I planned to spend time in the Washington Mall. I would then pick up my registration materials for the climate lobbying conference when they opened after 3 pm that day. It was a sunny summer day in the Washington D.C. area. It surprised Tom and Reena that I started the day so late to sightsee on the Washington Mall. I almost responded I was sluggish to start my day because I felt so at home in their guest quarters.

Exploring the National Archives on my first full day in Washington D.C.

I walked from their home to the DC Metro through their community of Takoma Park. The city of Takoma Park is a middle-class professional suburb of Washington D.C. With Norman Rockwell style brick homes and colonial style houses, it looks like the place you would want to raise a family and escape from the hustle and bustle of urban Washington D.C. It has a quiet feel. Yet, there are trendy boutiques, cafes, and restaurants in the fifteen-minute walk from Tom and Reena’s home to the DC Metro. It had a neighborly feel like fictional Mayberry, North Carolina from the Andy Griffith Show. I wanted to say hello to everyone I encountered, and they were happy to respond. Takoma Park is famous for its far-left progressive vibe. As a result, it prides itself on the nicknames of “Berkeley of the East” and “The People’s Republic of Takoma Park.”

Tom and Reena moved to Takoma Park after the 2020 COVID pandemic diminished. This was my third time staying with them there. Walking and spending time in Takoma Park was a highlight of my recent trips to Washington, D.C.

Like all my other visits to Washington, D.C, I had time to explore the national monuments of the Washington Mall during the day before the climate lobbying conference. I usually walked by the White House, Washington Monument, Vietnam Memorial, and the Lincoln Memorial. However, this year it felt too hot and humid to go for a long walk outside. To beat the heat, I decided do something different to go inside at the National Archives to see the original copies of the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution. Afterwards, I intended to see the modern cultural exhibits at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.

With the threat to our democracy from the autocratic breakthrough of Donald Trump, I was curious to see America’s founding documents to reflect upon how our country will prevail in these dangerous times. Even more, I came to Washington, D.C. to lobby my members of Congress to petition them to act. The American precedent to petition our leaders started with the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution. Like the other federal buildings on the Washington Mall, the National Archives looked like an imposing Roman or Greek grey stone temple with towering columns to hold up the building’s exterior. To get one in the mindset to go inside the National Archives, a sitting Roman statue, known as the Guardianship statue, was next to the front steps with the words etched in the stone, “Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.”

Once inside the National Archives, I walked around the Exhibit of the Record of Rights. The exhibit had great quotes from Chief Joseph, Congresswoman Barbara Jordan, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, and others on the significance of freedom and equality. In the center of the entrance to the exhibit was one of the four original copies of the 1297 Magna Carta, the first document of its kind to state that the king is not above the law and every man is entitled to a fair trial. The Magna Carta is considered as one of the most important legal documents in the history of democracy. In addition, it was a guiding source for the U.S. founding fathers for drafting the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution.

I next went to the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom which held the U.S. founding documents. The mammoth gates were open in the front of the room. I assumed they closed to protect the documents from thieves when the National Archives are closed in the evenings and weekends. The left side of this area had a huge mural painting of the founding fathers gathered around Thomas Jefferson holding the Declaration of Independence, known as the Declaration Mural. The right side had enormous mural painting of the founding fathers standing around holding copies of the U.S. Constitution with George Washington in the center, known as the Constitution Mural. Underneath the Declaration Mural, written displays explained and showcased the documents that lead to the Declaration of Independence. The center of the room under three large temperature-controlled cases displayed the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, known collectively as the Charters of Freedom.

A steady stream of people lined up under the Declaration Mural to see the Charter documents. I got in line to see them for myself up close. Because it was a steady line of individuals to look at the documents, I could not linger long admiring and studying them up close. I did not want to cause a delay for the onlookers. Looking at the originals up close, it was a bit disappointed to see how faded they were. On the other hand, the original Declaration of Independence document will 250 years old next year on July 4, 2026. The Constitution and the Bill of Rights are 14 years younger than the Declaration of Independence. Those documents now live more in our hearts, norms, and precedents than on the disappearing ink of this national treasure.

I was happy to see the big crowds at the National Archives. It gave me hope our American democratic experiment might continue past the threat of Donald Trump and the MAGA movement looking to trample over it. Granted this was a Sunday afternoon in the middle of summer vacation season. Yet, it felt like many people, including the international visitors at the National Archives, still cared about these documents and the democratic values they represent.

Seeing the Smithsonian National Museum of American History

I then went to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. I made a beeline to the Entertainment Nation Exhibit to see modern cultural icons, such as Archie bunker’s chair, Dorothy’s (Judy Garland) ruby slippers from the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, and puppets from The Muppet Show. I felt elated seeing all those cultural touch zones. Then I was enthralled to see so much more. I took many photos admiring so many other spectacular items, such as the R2-D2 and C-3PO costumes from Return of the Jedi, Prince’s guitar, the costume worn by Lin-Manuel Miranda as Alexander Hamilton in Hamilton: An American Musical on Broadway, 1992 U.S. Olympic gold medal figure skating champion Kristi Yamaguchi’s ice skates, the sign post from “M*A*S*H”, and the jacket, hat, and bull whip worn by Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones in the 1981 film Raiders of the Lost Ark, a bandana from country music artist Will Nelson, etc.

As I left the Smithsonian, I chatted with a tourist traveling with his family from the state of Washington. He recommended that I travel to the top of the Old Post Office Building, which is just a couple of blocks from the Smithsonian, to get a bird’s eye of view of Washington D.C. It took some time to wait in line to take the two different elevators to the observation deck. The view was a pleasant view of the city. However, it was windy at the top, which made the experience feel queasier with the heights. Plus, the view from the top of the Washington Monument is much higher and gives the best aerial view of the capital city.

Attending Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) Conference to prepare for lobbying

As with my previous ten visits to Washington D.C, I was there to attend a Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) Conference and lobby Day on Capitol Hill. CCL prides itself as a nonpartisan, grassroots advocacy climate change organization focused on national policies to address climate change. They like to enable individual breakthroughs in the exercise of personal and political power, such as lobbying Congress, on specific effective climate policies. This year, CCL wanted us to lobby Congress to support clean energy permitting reform and the Fix Our Forests Act to reduce wildfire risk, improve forest health, and protect local communities.

Before we lobbied on Capitol Hill on Tuesday July 22nd, CCL had an all-day conference on Monday, July 21st to learn more about the specific lobby asks for permitting reform and the Fix Our Forest Act. Even more, CCL had various trainings to help us be more skilled citizen lobbyists. When meeting with Congressional staff, CCL wants us to establish a likable rapport, listen intently to find common ground, while we confidently ask members of Congress to prioritize our climate policies. Over 800 CCL volunteers from nearly every U.S. state came to this conference to lobby over 400 Congressional Offices.

Since this was my 11th CCL Conference and Lobby Day, I made numerous friends with CCL from across the United States that enjoy reconnecting with at these conferences and lobby days. Friends from New York, Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina, Minnesota, California, Maryland, Alaska, Hawaii, Virginia, Missouri, and so many places. I made time to socialize with these friends at the hotel bar and restaurant meals in the limited free time.

The conference was held at the majestic Omni Shoreham, an upscale hotel located in northwestern Washington, D.C. Numerous plaques commemorate the history of this landmark hotel. It hosted numerous Presidential Inauguration Balls from President Franklin D. Roosvelt 1933 to President Bill Clinton playing the saxophone during his Inauguration Ball held there in 1993. President Harry Truman came there to play all night poker games while he was President. The Beatles stayed there in 1964 while they were in Washington D.C. to perform one of their first American concerts. The gravitas and the regal history of the hotel lend well to responsibility of lobbying Congressional offices to lobby for climate action at the U.S. Capitol the next day.

During the lunch, dinner, and evening breaks at the conference, CCL encouraged us to meet with our lobby teams to prepare for our scheduled Congressional lobby meetings happening the next day. At these prep meetings, we brainstormed on an action the member of Congress took that we would share our thanks and strategize on how to ask them to support the CCL priorities. We then assigned various meeting roles such as appreciator, notetaker, timekeeper, deliverer of the CCL leave behind document, asker of the primary and secondary CCL priorities, photographer, organizer for the thank you card, and follow up after the meeting to the requests and questions of the Congressional staff or member of Congress. These prep meetings were typically lively assuring a new person that their lobby experience will go well, others who have strong opinions how the Congressional Office will respond to the asks, and jockeying to consider who is best suited for each meeting role.

Before the conference, CCL assigned me to participate in four lobby meetings. They were all for Oregon members of Congress: Senator Jeff Merkley, Rep. Maxine Dexter, Rep. Andrea Salinas, and Rep. Val Hoyle. The meeting schedule indicated these would be staff meetings without Senator Jeff Merkley, Representatives Maxine Dexter, and Representative Val Hoyle there. It noted that the meeting with Andrea Salinas would be face-to-face with some of her staff present. It is encouraging when we see that the member of Congress might be joining us. However, in my 10 previous lobby days on Capitol Hill meeting with numerous Congressional Offices, I never saw a member of Congress show up to a CCL lobby meeting because changes in their committee schedule or other meetings forced them to attend those commitments instead.

I was the designated leader for the Congresswoman Maxine Dexter meeting. Because conflicts with other lobby prep meetings and another event, only two of my lobby team was able to join me for dinner to prepare for our meeting. I knew we had some very long-winded talkers in my lobby group who were very passionate about permitting reform and the Fix Our Forests Act. I advised the two people present that we wanted to balance listening to the concerns and objections of the Congressional Office to our asks to make sure they feel completely heard while we advocated for our CCL climate priorities. These two individuals talked a lot during our prep meeting. I worried they did not fully comprehend my advice. In addition, I shared my observation from 10 years of lobbying with CCL on Capitol Hill that there would be a slim chance that Rep. Dexter would join us since members of Congress frequently have schedule changes that force them to skip the CCL lobby meetings. I cautioned to not expect Rep. Dexter to join us but be pleasantly surprised if she does.

After this lobby prep meeting and the others I had that evening, I went back to Tom and Reena’s house in Takoma Park to visit with them and try to get some sleep before the big CCL Congressional lobby day on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, July 22nd.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of this blog: san account of my experience lobbying on Congressional Offices on Capitol Hill on July 22, 2025.
Then Part 3 is my recollection of the evening guided tour of the U.S. Capitol Building led by Congresswoman Val Hoyle on July 22, 2025.