Dressing to impress and wearing the right flag pin might help you land a job on the Hill, but sometimes all you need is a good pair of genes.
Congressional staff salary records released over the Thanksgiving holiday show several internships awarded to relations of members and staff. While it is against federal law for members of Congress to hire family members as staff, it is common for family members to hold positions in other offices.
Rep. Bill Flores' (R-Texas) son, William H. Flores Jr., held an internship with former Rep. John Campbell (R-Calif.) in 2014 and with the Joint Economic Committee earlier this year. He now works at Citizens Against Government Waste as director of online communications. Rep. Flores has a good relationship with CAGW, earning a 91% rating from the organization and was touted on their website recently for making a movie about wasteful spending called "Porkies."
Brandon Fields is son of former Rep. Cleo Fields (D-La.) and began an internship with Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C) in September. He currently attends George Washington University after transferring from Fordham University, where he played football as a quarterback.
Dion Lawson, whose father is a financial administrator for the House, had an internship with Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) in September. Salary records show Lawson being paid more than $1,000.
