Welcome to Workforce Management’s newest blog, Workforce Washington. I am Mark Schoeff Jr., WM’s Washington correspondent, and I am entering the blogosphere with trepidation.

One reason for my hesitancy is that I’m not certain I’ll consistently have great insight on the political milieu in Washington and how it relates to laws and regulations affecting people management. It’s a big enough challenge just keeping up with what’s happening here—let alone trying to make sense of it. And when I do have something to say, it may be off base because the playing field shifted and I didn’t know it.

After 15 years in this city, I’m amazed at how often I’m amazed by what goes on in Congress and the administration. What I predict will happen does not come true; conventional wisdom frequently is stood on its head; and fundamental policy changes can occur in the middle of the night when no one’s watching.

I’ll make the standard disclaimer here that I make when I speak at political conferences in Indiana: I don’t know what’s going on in Washington; I just hope that people who do return my calls.

With that caveat out of the way, I look forward to opining on occasion from my perch in the nation’s capital. If you would like to respond to something I said—or tell me why I got something wrong—please contact me at mschoeff@workforce.com.