By Karen LindellDemocracy is messy … in a good way. Matthew Bauer ’24, a double major in political science and criminology and criminal justice, said that’s one lesson he learned during his internship in Washington, D.C., in fall 2023.
“Our government is that way purposefully,” Bauer said. “Our republic is constructed in a way that allows it to be messy in order to get better.”
During his semester-long internship, Bauer, who served in the office of the speaker of the House of Representatives, experienced the nation’s chaos on a small and large scale. He spent a great deal of time answering phone calls from congressional constituents, listening to their concerns and directing them to others who could help them. Then, just a few weeks into his internship, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy of California was ousted by his colleagues, the first time in U.S. history the House had removed its leader. Suddenly, Bauer had a new boss, Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana, and callers had plenty of opinions to share about the congressional turmoil.
“Mentally, it was a hard time,” Bauer said of the transition. “But I’m glad it was dramatic, because I was exposed to so many different experiences.”
Bauer is now working as a field representative for Rep. Vince Fong in California’s 20th Congressional District (McCarthy’s former district) and is planning a career in law enforcement. He served his internship through the Lutheran College Washington Semester (LCWS) program, which works with students from about 16 small liberal arts college in the U.S., mainly those with Lutheran heritage. Cal Lutheran has been sending interns to Washington through LCWS since 1997.
“It’s not a religion-centered program,” said Kiku Huckle, PhD, Cal Lutheran associate professor of political science and the university’s LCWS representative. “But because we’re all liberal arts colleges, and very student-focused, we all agree on basic values. One of the goals is to teach students not just to be independent, but also how to work as a team — that it’s not just about you.”
LCWS, she said, offers students “an amazing combination of opportunities” to live, work and network in the nation’s capitol, “and gain exposure to the different types of jobs available when they graduate.”
Although a majority of LCWS interns are political science majors, the program is open to students in all fields, including biology, English, history, psychology, economics, philosophy, art, business and education. Interns work Mondays through Thursdays and attend classes two nights a week, then take Fridays off for special tours of federal sites.
The interns serve more than 500 organizations, including government offices (such as the U.S. Senate, House of Representatives, White House, Supreme Court, Department of State and more), media companies (C-SPAN, NPR), cultural institutions (Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington Ballet) and nonprofits (Greenpeace, Amnesty International). LCWS matches applicants with organizations that fit their academic and career interests.
The call of duty (and constituents)
Bauer, of Glendora, California, was initially interested in forensic accounting when he enrolled at Cal Lutheran and considered a career with the FBI. He then developed a passion for local law enforcement, which “offers more one-on-one interaction than sitting behind a desk solving white-collar crime,” Bauer said.
When he initially applied for the LCWS internship, most of his applications were for organizations related to law enforcement. His grandmother, however, suggested he apply for a position with the speaker’s office because McCarthy is from California. After an interview, he was immediately offered the internship, and decided the opportunity was too great to pass up.
Bauer started his internship in the speaker’s Capitol office, where he helped set up events, from delegate gatherings to the Capitol Christmas tree-lighting ceremony, and gave tours to dignitaries or groups such as the Wounded Warrior Project. Famous people who visited the Capitol, he said, ranged from prime ministers to Elon Musk, former NFL player Rob Gronkowski and comedian Dave Chappelle. Bauer also answered calls that came into the speaker’s office from around the country.
Halfway through the internship he switched to McCarthy’s Rayburn Building office across the street to handle calls from the congressman’s California constituents, then transitioned to new speaker Johnson’s constituent office.
“People just like being heard,” said Bauer, who fielded calls about issues like veterans’ concerns, healthcare access, and social security, as well as occasional threats (passed along to Capitol police).
Bauer met and talked with both McCarthy and Johnson, as well as U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar.
The internship, Bauer said, taught him “genuine maturity and professionalism,” as well as about how government works — or doesn’t work.
Miles away in California, he said, “I had a very sheltered sense of security; I assumed government would handle problems and pass laws.” But politicians, he said, “are just as human as you and me, and because of that, there’s a lot of dysfunction.
On the frontlines of the consumer hotline
Rebecca (Rae) Eastham ‘25, of Visalia, California, a double major in political science and mathematics who wants to attend law school after graduation, was an LCWS intern in spring 2024 for the office of Brian L. Schwalb, attorney general for the District of Columbia.
Her first day as an intern, Eastham said, was “a little crazy” because the entire district closed down due to a snowstorm, so she did her orientation via Zoom. Most of her responsibilities involved answering calls for the attorney general’s consumer protection hotline, handling legal problems related to local businesses (service charges added to restaurant bills were a popular complaint) and apartments.
“I had my own set of cases I was assigned to, and helped other attorneys on their cases,” she said. For one large case, Eastham went through 1,000 pages of bank statements to search for suspicious purchases and transfers (such as an expensive puppy) by a woman suspected of stealing government money.
“But I think the main thing I learned was to listen and care,” she said. “Often, people had already called 15 other places, and were so exhausted. Telling them I know how to help, even just as an intern, was an awesome feeling.”
For more information about LCWS, visit washingtonsemester.org.
