As world crises loom, steep 'learning curve' awaits region's rookies in Congress

WASHINGTON - In 2006, shortly after his election to the U.S. Senate, Bob Casey walked into a briefing room with top lawmakers - including Barack Obama and John Kerry - and members of the Iraqi parliament.

These were not the kinds of meetings he had held as Pennsylvania's auditor general and treasurer.

"That was kind of my first introduction to a foreign-relations engagement," Casey, a Democrat, recalled the other day.

Soon, four new members of Congress from the Philadelphia area will face a similar transition, just as international crises have come to dominate Congress' attention.

"It is a significant challenge moving from balancing a local county budget, dealing with sewer and land-use issues, helping deal with response times for police, and building parks and libraries to trying to be fully informed about the terrorist threats we face in the Middle East, Russian aggression in the Ukraine, Boko Haram in Nigeria," said U.S. Sen. Chris Coons (D., Del.), a former county executive now on the Foreign Relations Committee.

In and around Philadelphia, the departures of U.S. Reps. Jim Gerlach (R., Pa.), Allyson Y. Schwartz (D., Pa.), Rob Andrews (D., N.J.) and Jon Runyan (R., N.J.) have opened the door to candidates who include two state legislators, two county officials, and an ex-mayor - along with an Iraq veteran, a businessman, and a former NFL linebacker.

Like most congressional hopefuls, they have scant experience in the kind of world events that have unfolded in recent months.

Last week, Congress voted on President Obama's controversial plan to confront the Islamic State, and health hearings were held on the Ebola outbreak.

The biggest foreign-affairs decisions can involve life and death. They can also be career-defining: Obama's opposition to the Iraq war helped catapult him to the White House. Kerry was pilloried for wavering.

Missteps can have far-reaching consequences.

"You shoot from the hip, particularly on international matters, it can have catastrophic impacts in the country that you may not even know about because it's not in your local press, but it's being carried in the Middle Eastern press, or the African press," said U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R., N.J.), a senior member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

His advice: "Do a lot of homework and a lot of hard work before you even speak."

On Thursday, less than a year into his term, a former mayor, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D., N.J.), was faced with a vote that could plunge the U.S. into another conflict.

"When you have votes like the one you have today, they really demand a lot of focus and knowledge," Booker said moments before voting "yea" on Obama's plan to arm and train Syrian rebels to fight the Islamic State.

During his Senate campaign last year, Booker held midnight briefings with generals in the Middle East to learn the issues there, he said.

"It's a challenging learning curve, but some of the preparation occurs during the campaign" when candidates are pressed on the issues, said Casey, who served on the Foreign Relations Committee and developed an expertise on the Middle East.

New lawmakers have opportunities for briefings with administration officials, Capitol Hill staff, and more-experienced colleagues.

Coons had help from a fellow Delawarean - Vice President Biden, a former Foreign Relations chairman. Casey sought out longtime U.S. Sen. Carl Levin (D., Mich.).

"If the members take the time, they will be properly briefed," said U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent (R., Pa.).

Coons, who worked in South Africa and wrote a book about it, said there was no replacement for travel. He recalled his first trip as a senator to Afghanistan, Pakistan, Jordan, and Israel: "It was eye-opening."

Foreign affairs have not featured prominently in local House races this year - they have largely focused on the economy - but one candidate, Manan Trivedi, raised it as the U.S. headed toward conflict with the Islamic State.

As a Navy surgeon who served in Iraq, Trivedi said veterans' experiences were critical to foreign policy debates.

"I never grew up trying to be a congressman or something like that," he said, but his experience in Iraq "started me . . . asking questions."

Trivedi, a Democrat, faces Chester County Commissioner Ryan Costello in a Chester County district. Costello, in a statement, said, "It's important that Congress have viewpoints from all walks of life" and touted his experience overseeing a county government with a $530 million budget.

Another Democratic veteran, former Army Ranger and Central Intelligence Agency staffer Kevin Strouse, is challenging U.S. Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick (R., Pa.) in a Bucks County district.

Several lawmakers said veterans' combat experience added an important perspective to foreign-policy debates. But they also praised the value of local government experience.

"We major in local issues," said Smith. Most of his time is spent working with local officials and on constituent services.

"There was nothing about county government that prepared me for the specifics" of foreign policy, Coons said. But he said balancing a budget and having to deliver results and services was "excellent preparation for being responsive to your constituents."

Indeed, Gerlach, a former state lawmaker, became versed in Ukrainian issues because of the large Ukrainian population in his district. Dent said his Lehigh Valley district had the largest Syrian population of any in Congress - and he cited Syrian Christians' concerns as he voted against Obama's Middle East plan Wednesday.

Even on issues across the globe, some politics remains local.

@JonathanTamari