SAN DIEGO — Congresswoman Sara Jacobs (D-San Diego) cast her first vote in the 117th Congress on Sunday to reelect Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) as Speaker of the House in a 216-209 victory over Republican leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield). With many members of the Progressive wing of the Democratic party, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) waiting until after the 7th and last group cast their votes, McCarthy was leading Pelosi 194-189. Then Ocasio-Cortez and other members who had not yet voted were given another chance to do so, resulting in a surge of votes for Pelosi and her victory.
Voting had been divided into alphabetical groups of 72 so as to preclude too many members of Congress from being in the chamber in violation of rules that the House had adopted in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Everyone in the House chamber, including all members and staff, were required to wear masks during the proceedings, which San Diego Jewish World monitored via C-SPAN.
Jacobs, in the third group to be called, was the first of the five-member San Diego County delegation to announce her vote, bringing the total to 72 for Pelosi versus 90 for McCarthy at that point. U.S. Rep. Mike Levin (D-San Diego and Orange Counties) was in the 4th group bringing the vote to 95 for Pelosi versus 109 for McCarthy. U.S Rep. Scott Peters (D-San Diego) was in the 5th group, with his vote bringing the total to 131 for Pelosi and 145 for McCarthy. U.S. Rep. Juan Vargas (D-San Diego) was in the sixth group, in which he brought the total to 177 for Pelosi versus 180 for McCarthy. The county’s only Republican Congressman, Darrell Issa, whose vote was among the final surge of those cast, voted for McCarthy, putting the tally at 204-203.
During the voting, two Democrats announced their support for a non-candidates Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Illinois) and U.S Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York), the Democratic Caucus Chairman who earlier had nominated Pelosi for the post. Three other members of Congress voted “Present” which lowered the number of votes Pelosi or McCarthy needed to obtain a majority.
Because members of Congress exited or entered the chambers after one vote and before the next, there was considerable lag time in the voting procedure. In more typical sessions, members of Congress cast their votes electronically, rather than by verbal roll call.
After Pelosi’s election, leaders of the Republican and Democratic caucuses were named along with the rest of the California delegation — in which both Pelosi and McCarthy are members — to escort Pelosi to the dais. Jacobs was a member of two groups so honored: the California delegation and the party leadership as the first-term class’s member on the Democratic Policy and Steering Committee.
McCarthy gave a speech criticizing the previous Congress “as the least productive Congress in the last 50 years” and also objected to some proposed rules which he said will make it more difficult for his party to offer amendments to legislation. Before congratulating Pelosi and ceremonially handing her the gavel, he pledged never to vote for a tax increase, to the applause of his Republican colleagues.
Pelosi, accepting the gavel, did not respond to McCarthy’s remarks, but instead struck a bipartisan note. She mourned the passing of Congressman-elect Luke Ledlow (R-Louisiana) who died of a heart condition complicated by the coronavirus, before he ever could take the oath of office. She also extended condolences to the family of U.S Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland), whose 25-year-old son Thomas Raskin died of undisclosed causes. He was a second-year law student at Harvard University.
Pelosi also mourned the deaths last year of Democratic Congressmen Elijah Cummings and John Lewis, as well as the death of Associate Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
She also quoted from Ecclesiastes, saying that to every season there is a time, and now is the time to heal. “It is time to defeat the coronavirus and defeat it we will,” she declared to standing applause.
Following her short speech, Pelosi was formally sworn in by Rep Don Young (R-Alaska), who is the longest serving member in the House of Representatives, first elected in 1972. Calling for bipartisanship, Young said “it’s time we hold hands and talk to one another. ” Furthermore, he said, “You will be the Speaker of the House, not of (just) a party. “When you do have a problem — or something so contentious,” he suggested, “let’s sit down and have a drink together.” Pelosi thereafter administered the oath of office to Young, 87.
However, when she sought to administer the oath to the incoming class of congressmembers (now called “first-time elected” class rather than the “freshman” class), U.S. Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) made a motion to exclude those who were elected from Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin — the six states where President Donald Trump is challenging the electoral college victories of President-elect Donald Trump.
That prompted Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Maryland), the Democratic leader of the House, to offer a privileged resolution, taking precedence over Roy’s motion, to authorize the Speaker to swear in the first-term members. It was approved on a vote of 371-2, with Jacobs voting in the affirmative.
After that Pelosi administered the oath of office en masse to the newly elected members of Congress as well as to others who had remained in the Chambers. Thereafter other members of Congress came into the chamber to take their oaths of office.
After taking her oath office, Jacobs, 31, released the following statement through her congressional office:
“I am honored and humbled to be sworn in today as a Member of Congress representing my hometown and the community I love. I am ready to do the hard work of getting us out of this pandemic, rebuilding the American people’s trust in our government and institutions, and bringing a new approach to governing.
“Today, I became the youngest member from California and the third youngest member in all of Congress. And I take that responsibility seriously — to ensure my and future generations have a world that is livable, an economy that is equitable, and that the United States rebuilds our institutions and our standing around the world.
“There is so much work to be done. I am honored to be entrusted with this responsibility and am looking forward to getting started.”
Earlier on Sunday, Jacobs announced the names of eight people who will serve on her staff. They included two women who served on her campaign staff, four former members of the legislative staff of her congressional predecessor Susan Davis, D-San Diego, and two who had other government experience.
Amy Kuhn, who had served as her campaign manager, was named as her chief of staff in Washington D.C., with overall responsibility for staff operations both in the nation’s capital and at the district office in San Diego. Katie Heller, who had served as Jacobs’ deputy campaign manager, will also go to Washington as the congresswoman’s scheduling and operations manager. Others who will serve in Jacobs’ Washington office in Room 1232 of the Longworth House Building include Brendon Mendoza as legislative director, which was the position he had held working for Susan Davis; Will McDonald, communications director, who had held a similar job for former Congressman John Delaney (D-Maryland); Cynthia Patton, financial administrator, who previously was deputy chief of staff to Davis, and Jordan Nasif who will serve as a staff assistant. She previously had served as an intern in the office of U.S. Rep. Mike Levin (D-San Diego & Orange Counties).
For her San Diego district office at 2700 Adams Avenue, Suite 102, Jacobs chose Jessica Mier to be her deputy chief of staff and head of San Diego operations. Mier previously had served as district director for Davis. Jacobs also selected Jawad al Baghdadi to be a senior community representative in her district office. He had served as a community representative for Davis.
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Donald H. Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com