Congresswoman-elect Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.) won a special election two weeks ago to fill the seat vacated by her late father, Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), though she is still waiting to be formally sworn in. And House Republican leadership is now giving a new excuse for refusing to seat Grijalva.
On Tuesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) initially told reporters that he had no problem swearing in Arizona's newest member of Congress, saying "we'll schedule it, I guess, as soon as she wants." The speaker made that comment in response to a reporter reminding him that he had previously sworn in two Republican members of Congress during a pro forma session (a session which is usually gaveled in and out in just a matter of minutes where no official business is conducted).
However, Johnson's staff later walked that statement back, and told NOTUS reporter Daniella Diaz that Grijalva would not be formally sworn in until after the ongoing government shutdown ends.
"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," an unnamed House Republican leadership staffer told Diaz. "It’s a customary practice in the House to swear in members when the chamber is in legislative session."
During a Tuesday appearance on MSNBC's "Deadline: White House," Grijalva told MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace that her main point of contact to date has not been Johnson (the speaker is typically the one handling new member swearing-in ceremonies) but House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.). She told Wallace that her message to Johnson has continued to be "just give me a date," and said she remains ready to fly to Washington D.C. to be sworn in.
Grijalva promised to sign the bipartisan discharge petition to compel the Department of Justice (DOJ) to release all remaining documents pertaining to convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein once she's formally sworn in. The petition — which is being circulated by Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) – currently has 217 signatures, and Grijalva's signature would give it the 218 signatures required to bypass Johnson and put the bill up for a vote directly on the floor of the House of Representatives.
All 213 Democrats have signed the petition, and Massie convinced three of his fellow Republicans – Reps. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) to add their names. Currently, the government shutdown remains unlikely to end anytime soon as Democrats have continued to refuse to vote for a bill to reopen the government without a guarantee that Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits will be extended. Should those tax credits expire, health insurance premiums could potentially double in price as the open enrollment period approaches in November.