It was a rare day for the Senate. Despite their differences, the unlikely crew forged ahead, one at a time, persevering through delays and distractions toward a shared destination.
One stole a whiff of another’s bottom. Another laid down on the floor.
Wednesday was a memorable day to be a dog on Capitol Hill.
Dozens of dogs paraded through the Senate in Mardi Gras costumes and beads. Never mind that the government is partially shut down, or that Mardi Gras was last Tuesday, or that dogs probably don’t know what Mardi Gras is.
The event —“Doggi Gras” — was for humans, and was held by North Carolina’s retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R). The parade is silly, he concedes, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t important.
“Having Democrat, Republican offices, lobbyists, whoever has a dog that wants to come and participate … you end up building better relationships,” Tillis said. “It makes for a better environment, a more productive environment.”
The event was not without its critics, who argued that congressional officials’ time would be better spent passing legislation, or solving the shutdown that was on its 12th day. There’s little sign that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the only department affected by the shutdown, will reopen soon. Senators remain stuck at an impasse after another vote on reopening failed Tuesday, meaning the Transportation Security Administration, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Coast Guard remain unfunded.
A post from Tillis advertising the event drew jeers: “Passing the Save America Act is crucial to our country and you are holding Mardi Gras pet parades. Sad,” one message read, referring to a bill that would require voters to show ID to cast ballots. “The USA is a failed nation and you are spending time on this type of dog s—,” read another. A third, which summed up the disdainful tone of the complaints, said in part, “Who the hell cares about this?”
Asked to respond to the criticism, Tillis laughed. But his tone hardened.
“I don’t find their comments particularly well-informed,” Tillis said. “Grow up. I mean, my god, you can walk and chew gum here.”
At 3:58 p.m., the senator led Gus, a staff member’s chocolate lab, out of his office and down the hall to the official Doggi Gras meeting spot: a large, wide open atrium in the neighboring Senate office building.
That space, normally cold and echoey, was packed. People on higher floors lined windows and balconies, peering at the spectacle below.
Their view: all kinds of dogs, adorned in feathered boas, sunglasses, even “Tito’s vodka” sweaters.
The event, billed as a parade, functioned more like a fashion show.
When each participant’s turn came, dog and owner strutted toward Tillis, who parked himself at the center of the cooing crowd, holding a bullhorn and announcing each contestant. His staff handed out necklaces and bandanas as everyone craned their necks for a view of the participants.
Luigi, a 1-year-old bulldog, trotted down the runway in a jester costume, stopping only once for a quick floor sniff before proceeding to Tillis’s extended hand.
Some participants had rockier runs. “Aw, Bernie,” one woman said sympathetically as her dog’s tutu began to slide down his rear end midway through his walk. Bernie sniffed a kneeling photographer, plunked down and lowered his head beneath his lifted leg. “Come on, buddy, let’s see your promenade,” Bernie’s human coaxed.
The Senate’s most famous dog, Babydog, also made an appearance.
Her owner, Sen. Jim Justice (R-West Virginia), in his electric wheelchair, followed behind his dog, who peered back at him from her wagon.
“This light moment makes us better in every way, it touches our soul,” Justice said in an interview after his and Babydog’s walk. “These are the moments in life that have made America what America is.”
Besides Tillis and Justice, the crowd was comprised mainly of congressional staffers.
One of them, Alyssa Hayes, works on the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works for Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island). She was joined by dogs Kido and Doffy. “This just seemed like a fun way to destress for an hour or so,” Hayes said.
Jackson Wetherbee, a congressional intern, came out to support George, a dog in his office. “It’s awesome,” Wetherbee said. “It’s a good way to get out of the office and meet some people.”
Josh Jamison, who works in Sen. Tim Sheehy’s (R-Montana) office, previously participated in Tillis’s canine Halloween events with his dog, also named George. There are multiple ways to spin an event like this amid an ongoing shutdown, he said, but: “This took all of 20 minutes out of our day, to come down here on a Wednesday afternoon in between votes and hang out with dogs. I think if folks have an issue with that, there’s a larger conversation to be had.”
Tillis held the Halloween dog event annually for nearly a decade. “Howl-o-ween” evolved from an informal gathering outside his old office to an official event that is now declared with a resolution, and approved by the Rules Committee.
This fall, amid the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, that approval never came. Tillis’s office decided to postpone the event, and rebrand it Doggi Gras. A February event, they reasoned, would land before election season picked up — and after the shutdown ended.
That shutdown did end, after 43 days. But two weeks before Doggi Gras, the current, albeit smaller shutdown, began, as negotiations stalled between Democrats and the White House to fund DHS.
This time, Tillis proceeded.
“It’s like 45 minutes to an hour of laughter at the end of the day with fellow pet owners,” Tillis said. “I mean, who can be against that?”
By 4:30 p.m., most of the dogs had left. Some, led by their owners, headed outside, presumably to take care of business.
Now, senators and staffers plan to return to business of their own — finding a way to keep the government funded and running, with the shutdown on day 13.
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