In a tense atmosphere, the 117th Congress in United States History was sworn in on Sunday, with 59 new arrivals.
American elected officials are sworn in on January 3, 2020 in Washington.
AFP
Black mask on the face, Nikema Williams is well aware of the toxic political divisions of Washington as the challenges of the pandemic: this African-American, newly elected representative of Georgia survived the Covid-19. “It’s a new day in Congress,” she said as she walked through the halls of the Capitol on Sunday for her first official day as an American parliamentarian.
Nikema Williams takes back the seat of civil rights legend John Lewis, who died last July in the House of Representatives. What will be his priority in the coming weeks? “I didn’t know if I was going to live or die,” she says, speaking of her three weeks of illness. So his main priority will be, in his words, to contribute to a national strategy against the coronavirus.
The Constitution provides for a new Congress to be sworn in every two years on January 3, hence this rare weekend session. New arrivals to this 117th Congress in US history number 59, including Nikema Williams and, at the other end of the political spectrum, Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, also elected from Georgia and close to the QAnon conspiracy movement.
Oaths with mask
Sunday was much different from other inaugural days of Congress, with parliamentarians wearing masks as they raised their right hands to take the oath. Social distancing was de rigueur, but not always respected, during one of the first tasks of the day, the election of the speaker, the person who chairs the House of Representatives. It was Democrat Nancy Pelosi who was narrowly re-elected to this post.
But dark clouds are hanging over Washington this year. The contestation of the result of the presidential election in November by Donald Trump creates a particularly tense atmosphere. Although the courts have refused to consider his appeals, the Republican President and his supporters continue to ensure that Democrat Joe Biden’s victory was achieved through massive electoral fraud and that it was Donald Trump who won the day. election.
Divisions were further exacerbated on Sunday by the resounding release of an audio recording in which President Trump is heard asking an official in Georgia – one of the states where he claims fraud occurred – to “find” votes to reverse the result of the presidential election in this state.
«Obstacles»
Senate Republican Majority Chairman Mitch McConnell summed up the political background to senators after Vice President Mike Pence swore in the newly elected. “To say that the 117th Congress is meeting at a very challenging time would be an understatement,” said Mitch McConnell. “Between political division, a deadly pandemic and adversaries across the world, the obstacles that are before us are many and they are serious,” he said.
On Wednesday, a joint session of the two houses of Congress must certify the vote of the college of the grand voters and confirm Joe Biden as president. But Republican parliamentarians have announced that they will challenge the results of several states where they consider that there has been fraud, while this certification process is usually a formality.
Their business is set to fail, but it attracts much criticism, including from the Republican camp. Thus Adam Kinzinger, a Republican representative from Illinois, called on the parliamentarians concerned not to oppose the certification of Joe Biden, relying on the disturbance caused by the audio recording of Donald Trump. “It’s absolutely overwhelming,” tweeted Adam Kinzinger to the protesters. “You can’t do this with a clear conscience.”
“Overwhelming”
In contrast, Scott Fitzgerald, a newly elected Republican from Wisconsin, said he had not yet decided his position. “I have not yet resolved this question,” he told AFP. For Democrat Nikema Williams, however, everything is clear. “The voters have voted, and it is time to move forward towards a peaceful transfer of power.”
A new Democratic senator, John Hickenlooper, former governor of Colorado, has brushed aside concerns over the certification vote and the nomination that will follow. “On January 20, Joe Biden will become president,” but “there is obviously a lot of politics by then,” he told AFP.
Vice President Pence, who will chair Wednesday’s vote, ignored questions from reporters about his stance that day.
Emanuel Cleaver, Democratic representative and priest, called for divine help as he delivered the inaugural prayer. “God, at a time when many believe that the light of democracy is starting to fade, give us further commitment to its principles,” he said.
Posted: 01/04/2021, 3:05 AM-
