Congressmen still aren’t getting their mail

Feeling out of touch? Your Iowa Congressman may feel the same way. Chances are, they’re not getting most of their mail, a holdover from the anthrax attacks of October. A letter sent from an Iowa constituent takes two to four days to arrive at a processing unit in Virginia, then is trucked to Lima, Ohio, for an irradiation procedure designed to kill any dangerous microorganisms. Then for another seven to ten days it’s hauled off to another processing unit where any non-paper contents are taken out and tested. Only after that will the mail be sorted into individual bins and delivered to capital hill. Senator Tom Harkin’s office is asking Iowans to phone or e-mail, saying the senator hasn’t seen most of the mail sent to him since the anthrax scare began in October.