Members of the 112th Congress Depart, Taking Their Quirks Along

By JENNIFER STEINHAUER, NYT

WASHINGTON — Oh, how much will be missed on Capitol Hill next year, when more than 80 current members depart, half of them involuntarily. Say goodbye to the foreign policy expertise of Senator Richard G. Lugar of Indiana, to the institutional knowledge of many in the California delegation and, perhaps most sadly of all, to Senator Kent Conrad’s bichon frisé.

The dog, Dakota, reflecting Mr. Conrad’s home state of North Dakota, was as much a fixture in the halls of the upper chamber as marble staircases and indignant news conferences. It was often toted around by a staff member who tried valiantly to maintain his dignity as he cuddled the fluffy pet while its owner voted. Dakota will hardly be the only piece of current Capitol culture to depart.

Taking leave with Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas is her famous purse, which is carried by a rotating group of young men — a role known as “the purse boy” — as she makes her way from the Senate floor to her office or around town.

Never again shall Hill denizens see Representative Timothy V. Johnson’s ubiquitous cellphone, which he had pressed to his ear all day as he walked around the Capitol calling every one of his Illinois constituents, nor ponder how Representative Nan Hayworth of New York manages to avoid taking a spill as she races around in her stilettos.

(More here.)