Voting on issues affecting the economic well being of residents of the 10^th Congressional District has been just one part of the journey for Rep. Robert Dold (R-Kenilworth) since he went from operating a 150-year-old family business to the halls of Congress. 

Though Dold has had nearly unlimited access to power brokers like Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA), he said he has found representing approximately 650,000 of his neighbors a humbling experience. 

“I get goose bumps when I go up the steps of the Capitol,” Dold said. “There are several ways to get from the Cannon (House Office Building) to the floor. You can take the tunnel or you can walk outside. I prefer to go outside,” he added, explaining that he likes the humility felt when ascending the steps. 

Dold had been a member of Congress less than a month when he attended President Barack Obama’s State of the Union speech. As a member of the House of Representatives he was one of the first there taking a seat with Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-Western Springs). 

“I never thought I would sit on the left side for my first State of the Union,” Dold said. “I sat on the Democratic side to show bipartisanship.” 

Most people watching the speech on television hear the sergeant at arms say, “Mr. Speaker, the President of the United States.” Dold heard much more. 

Dold Recounts First State of the Union

“First, you hear, ‘Mr. Speaker, members of the Senate’ and the Senate walks into the chamber,” Dold said. 

“Then it’s the Supreme Court and members of the Cabinet except for one,” Dold added explaining one member of the Cabinet must be in a separate, secure place in case of an unforeseen disaster “so the country can continue.” 

A different highlight of the term came in May at another joint session of Congress. This time it was for an address by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Dold had returned from his first trip to Israel as a Congressman a few days earlier. 

“I had been in Israel 72 hours before and heard the President’s speech about returning to the 67 borders there,” Dold said referring to Obama’s suggestion Israel return to its borders before the 1967 Six Day War in exchange for peace. “Hearing him (Netanyahu) at a joint session was special.” 

A Smile at Giffords Return

By August he was immersed in the debate over increasing the nation’s debt ceiling. When he was on the floor for the vote, one that had been hotly negotiated and debated, he got another surprise and non-partisan experience when Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) returned to the House floor for the first time since she was shot in January. 

“Her return was a remarkable story,” Dold said. “To see her and hear her on the floor brought a smile to all her colleagues.” 

Dold had been in Congress a short time when Giffords was shot. Like many of his colleagues, he decided not to turn his Town Hall meetings into a security scene akin to an airport. 

“We were more observant, but we didn’t want to change any of the dynamics,” Dold said. “We kept a keen eye out, but wanted to remain accessible. This had been the act of an unstable individual.” 

The hardest adjustment for Dold was the change in his commute to work. For years he went from his Kenilworth home to an office in Northfield. Now he flies between Chicago and Washington most weeks. 

“My wife (Danielle) is a saint,” Dold said of the family adjustment. “She has the real burden of the job. I miss them all (his wife and three young children), but she does the heavy lifting.”