New House Will Start With Narrow Margins

“The House will begin the new session of Congress with an important to-do list: swearing in new members, electing a speaker in the House, defining the rules of the new Congress and certifying the results of the presidential election,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Democrats will have little wiggle room, with a margin of just a few votes as Republicans push to stop the majority’s plans.”

“Underscoring the sense of urgency, the House and Senate will start the session on a Sunday, for the first time on record. The Constitution dictates that Congress starts on Jan. 3, but in the past when the day has fallen on the weekend, lawmakers have come to an agreement to move the date to start during the workweek. But this year, Democrats wanted to start as early as possible, with the certification of Joe Biden’s election win set for Jan. 6 and Democrats wanting to avoid any recess appointments by President Trump, which could occur if there is any gap between sessions.”