A freshman House Republican said he "never worked harder" before he took his seat in the 112th Congress.



The House has remained in session until the early hours of the morning several days this week after Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) allowed for a modified open-rule procedure for ongoing debate over the continuing resolution (CR), a measure to fund the government for the rest of fiscal 2011.



An open rule allowed members to offer as many amendments as they wanted to the CR. But Virginia Rep. Scott Rigell (R) said the grueling schedule has given him hardly any time to reflect on the some 580 amendments that were submitted.



"This job, I've never worked harder," he told The Ballot Box. "I was literally here 'til 3:30 — not speaking, just waiting to see if I was going to speak — and got up at 5:30 a.m. Under this open-rules session, it's quite the process."



Before defeating Democrat Glenn Nye last November, Rigell ran Freedom Automotive, which operates three dealerships in the Hampton Roads, Va., area. "I'm an entrepreneur," he said. "I'm not a person prone to hyperbole."



The House is expected to remain in session until at least early Friday morning as it debates the amendments to the CR.

--Updated at 3:33 p.m. Feb. 18

