John J. Miller of National Review decided to check-in on that brand new $621 million Capitol Visitor Center that has become the center of so much controversy — some for its political correctness and even more for its ginormous price tag. Here’s what he found:

So what does $621 million buy you? Apparently not paper towels in the men’s room. This morning around 9 am, the dispensers were empty in Congress’s sparkling-new Capitol Visitor Center.

I’ve already written about the CVC’s political correctness. Today, I experienced the CVC as a tourist, when I went with my family for a look-see. It sure was convenient to reserve our tour tickets online for the date and time of our choosing. This is a worthwhile innovation. Apart from that, however, the CVC is run with the efficiency you would expect from Congress: We stood in three different lines before we were finally ushered into a theater for a dull 13-minute propaganda video on the wonders of our Congress. The tour of the Capitol itself is the same as it ever was—i.e., perfectly okay, especially given the crowded conditions, though it would be nice if tourists could gain better access to the actual chambers of the House and Senate when they aren’t in session. I neglected to make special arrangements with my congressman’s office, so we missed the House; the Senate was simply closed to everybody. At least one of the gift shops in the CVC stinks (there are two, we went in one)—it’s full of china and jewelry, plus a few uninteresting books. Anybody with even half an ounce of business sense would do a better job of stocking it.

Yeah, well, we’re talking about Congress here. Lacking business sense is part of its very fiber. Anywho, I was thinking about taking a vaca to Washington and placing the CVC on the trip’s itinerary. I think I still will, but now I know to bring my hand drying instrument.