Harvard hosts convention for incoming Congressmen

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) -- Nearly four dozen freshmen members of the incoming Congress are in Cambridge this week for a convention that aims to educate them on policy and develop leadership.

The four-day event hosted through Friday by Harvard's Institute of Politics is seen by organizers as a time to connect Harvard faculty with lawmakers for an exchange of ideas, as well as provide a foundation on current issues.

The two main academic emphases are foreign policy and the economy, including its prospects, competitiveness and the jobs picture.

Practical information, such as advice from past lawmakers on what they wish they had known about Washington before they arrived, was also part of the program.

The partisan breakdown was 10 Republicans and 37 Democrats, including newly-elected Massachusetts Rep. Joseph Kennedy III.