Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is refusing to swear in a new Democratic representative until the Democrats vote to end the government shutdown, backtracking on a prior commitment and drawing the anger of the party in Washington.
Johnson previously told CNN on Tuesday that he would swear in Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva, D-Ariz. “as soon as she wants.”
The Arizona-rep-to-be won a special election on September 23, winning the seat held by her late father, Raul Grijalva. Grijalva has yet to be sworn in.
However, a leadership aide for Johnson contradicted the statement later in the day, saying it was “customary practice” to swear in newly elected representatives when Congress is in session.
“We will swear in Rep.-Elect Grijalva as soon as the House returns to session when Chuck Schumer, Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego decide to open up the government,” the aide said.
Grijalva pushed back later in the day, saying in a statement to CNN that she is ready to be sworn in.
“Speaker Johnson needs to stop dragging his feet and follow the same precedent he set in swearing in his Republican colleagues earlier this year,” the statement said, referencing the quick, “pro-forma” swearing-in of Florida GOP representatives Randy Fine and Jimmy Patronis.
“If he would simply give me a date and time, I will be there,” she said.
When asked earlier on Tuesday if Grijalva was not being sworn in to prevent a vote on releasing the Jeffrey Epstein case files, Johnson said it wasn’t connected to Epstein “at all.” If sworn in, her vote would be the necessary 218th vote in a procedural attempt to put forward a petition to release the Epstein files.
“We will swear her in when everybody gets back. It’s a ceremonial duty,” Johnson said. “Look, we’ll schedule it, I guess, as soon as she wants. It has nothing to do with it. I, we’re in pro forma session because there is nothing for the House to do. The House has done its job.”
Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., the ranking Democrat on the House Rules Committee, said Johnson’s refusal to swear in Grijalva was “outrageous.”
“You got the White House undermining our democracy. Now you got the speaker of the House doing the same thing. I mean, this is all about a continuation of the Epstein cover up,” McGovern told reporters on Tuesday. “The bulls**t continues.”
