Words by Ann Sullivan
Artwork by Gooseberry Press

Few sights in our capital city are as breathtaking as the cherry blossoms blooming on the Potomac with our nation’s monuments and memorials as a backdrop. April is the time of the year when the cherry blossoms pop. But the question is when. Timing Mother Nature’s annual Washington festivity is unpredictable and local meteorologists are devoted to predicting when the trees will bloom. The Cherry Blossom Festival depends on it, as does the influx of tourists that boost Washington’s economy in the spring. Conversely, the blossoms do not stay very long and spring rains can make the displays even shorter. Timing is everything.

Those conditions sound much like the environment on Capitol Hill. Timing is everything. Issues do not have a long shelf life and many resources are spent on trying to figure out when the time is right for action, because as we know, policy changes make a big impact on the nation’s economy.

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