Transfer of power - Jan. 14, 2021
Welcome to the Transfer of Power newsletter. Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. is sworn in as the 46th president of the United States in 6 days.
We’re tracking key developments in the U.S. Congress and the White House before Jan. 20, the day the U.S. Constitution says all presidential power must transfer to the president-elect. Here’s the latest:
The Biden team is pressing forward with inauguration ceremony preparations, making appointments to its White House staff and announcing jobs and economy nominees.
Vice President Mike Pence participated in a briefing on inauguration security at FEMA headquarters.
The House is considering fining lawmakers who refuse to go through new security screenings at the chamber, with a vote on the proposal as soon as next week.
What now?
Now, we wait for the U.S. Senate to return on Jan. 19, the day before Biden’s inauguration.
In a statement on Wednesday, current Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said that following the impeachment of President Donald Trump, “The Senate process will now begin at our first regular meeting following receipt of the article from the House.”
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said the article could be sent to the Senate as soon as “this week.”
The Senate is the chamber of Congress with the sole power to remove a president from office. To convict Trump would require a vote of two-thirds of the senators. Then, separate measures would have to pass in order to strip him of benefits given to former presidents and bar him from running for federal office again, writes McClatchy.
Credit: Alex Brandon, AP
The House also reconvenes next week, on Jan. 21. Among its first order of business is a potential vote on a “rule change that mandates fines for lawmakers who refuse to follow new security protocols established following the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol,” McClatchy reports. Metal detectors were installed Tuesday to screen everyone entering the House chamber.
“The potential fines come as some lawmakers … complained about or refused to go through the metal detectors as they entered the chamber and berated Capitol Police over the new protocols.”
Under the proposed rule, lawmakers would be fined $5,000 for the first offense and $10,000 for the second. The fines would be taken directly from their paychecks.
Follow these journalists on Twitter for more news:
@fran_chambers - Francesca Chambers, White House correspondent, McClatchyDC
@mawilner - Michael Wilner, White House correspondent, McClatchyDC
@Alex_Roarty - Alex Roarty, White House correspondent, McClatchyDC
@davecatanese - Dave Catanese, Washington correspondent for The Lexington Herald-Leader
@LightmanDavid - David Lightman, senior congressional correspondent, McClatchy
@alextdaugherty - Alex Daugherty, McClatchy political correspondent for the Miami Herald
@MurphinDC - Brian Murphy, North Carolina politics correspondent
@BryanLowry3 - Bryan Lowry, Washington correspondent for the Kansas City Star
This story was originally published January 14, 2021 at 3:49 PM.