michigan congressman has 6 weeks to make his mark

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http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_SIX_WEEK_CONGRESSMAN?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-11-17-04-06-55

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Driving from Michigan in his Ford F150 pickup truck, David Curson arrived in Washington a week ago. He set up an office last Sunday, was sworn in as a congressman on Tuesday and by Friday had logged his first votes and given his first floor speech - one that stretched a bit past the one minute he'd been allotted.

The 64-year-old Democrat has no time to waste. In six weeks, he'll be gone.

In Congress' packed lame-duck session, Curson is a curiosity: He is one of four members of the House sworn in this week to fill a partial term, but he's the only one who didn't win a full, two-year term to go with the temporary gig. In January, he'll drive his truck home, replaced by Republican Rep.-elect Kerry Bentivolio, whom Curson beat out for the partial term. Curson did not run for a full term, only opting to run in the special election after other Democrats took a pass.

The seat was left vacant when Rep. Thaddeus McCotter, a Republican, quit Congress during the summer after he failed to qualify for the ballot because of questions about petition signatures.