The 5-week congresswoman: Brenda Jones exiting House

U.S. Rep. Brenda Jones' short-lived career in Congress is coming to a close after she served the final weeks of former Rep. John Conyers' term in the U.S. House. Jones, a Detroit Democrat, took the oath of office Nov. 29 and moved into Conyers' old office in the spacious Rayburn building on Capitol Hill. She served three unremarkable weeks in the lame-duck session before the federal government partially shut down and lawmakers recessed for the holidays. Jones appears to have taken the job seriously, casting about 77 votes in the U.S. House and introducing two bills — one about affordable housing and the other targeting states that reduce the minimum wage.  Each bill had a single co-sponsor — Democratic Rep. Brenda Lawrence of Southfield — and was assigned to committee, though neither will come up for consideration before the 115th Congress adjourns this week.