It has been recent practice for the Senate to not be in session on Fridays so members could travel back to their home districts. That may change come January.
The Washington Post says incoming Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell wants to implement an "aggressive schedule" for 2015, which includes having Senators remain in D.C.. on Fridays.
In September, we pointed out that Congress rarely works a full week, prompting some a vigorous response from some unlikely defenders. Congress does work all the time, we were reminded, and members of the Senate often travel on Fridays to go back to their states.
Which is true, to an extent. The conservative Washington Examiner looked at how often members of the Senate returned to their home states, finding that longer-term incumbents were less likely to do so. Two of the longest serving senators, Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), returned to their districts 17 and 15 times a year on average, according to the Examiner's data.
