Family, service, and a break from the ‘s—show’: Lawmakers share what they’re grateful for this Thanksgiving

Both Reps.Anna Paulina Luna (pictured with her son) and Steny Hoyer (pictured with wife Elaine Kamarck) said they were grateful for time with family this Thanksgiving.(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images;Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Ovation TV/Up Entertainment)

Asked what he would be doing while home, McGovern said, “I do a 43-mile walk every year for the food bank in Western Massachusetts.So Monday and Tuesday, I’ll be walking 43 miles.”

He joked, “So this may be the last time you see me.”

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And some are grateful for newfound family time — like House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, and former House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., who just remarried in June 2023.

“I’mthankful for a lot of things.I’ve got a wonderful new wife who I’ll be married to now for two and a half years,” Hoyer said.“My first wife died in ‘97, so I was single for a long time.”

Now, however, he added, “I’m very happy.I’m thankful for, we have 17 grandchildren, they’re all healthy, they’re all doing well.”

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Chairman Rep.Jodey Arrington speaks at a news conference after the House narrowly passed a bill forwarding President Donald Trump’s agenda at the U.S.Capitol in Washington on May 22, 2025.(Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

�I am thankful for 10 years of an awesome opportunity to serve my country and to leave a legacy of a better future for my children, and now to return to those children to be a man of my own house instead of the man in the people’s house.”

Meanwhile, Rep.Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., said Thanksgiving was a good reminder to practice gratitude in one’s day-to-day life.

“I’m always mostthankful for the blessingsthat I’ve received, both for me personally and for my family.I’m just very grateful.It’s an important practice, I think, for everybody, just to always be thankful.Even when things are going bad, you’ve got to try and be thankful all the time.Gratitude is the attitude,” he said.

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Ranking member Rep.Jim McGovern, D-Mass., speaks during the House Rules Committee meeting in the U.S.Capitol on Jan.31, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

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�Myfamily and I— we don’t do it anymore — but have a popsicle stick ornament making contest.It was a good time.”

Luna said hers was “binge-watching ‘Harry Potter,’” and Hoyer smiled, “I’m a big turkey and gravy guy.”

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“Eat a lot of food andwatch a lot of football,” Arrington said when asked about what tradition he was most looking forward to this holiday.

Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.

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