Andy Harris casts first vote in Congress, for Boehner
Baltimore Sun colleague June Torbati reports from Washington:
New Rep. Andy Harris, the Baltimore County Republican now representing Maryland's First Congressional District, has cast his first vote in the House, joining his Republican colleagues in electing John Boehner speaker.
In the minutes leading up to the vote, Harris' new colleagues made their way around the chamber, posing for pictures with children and grandchildren and lingering in the House's aisles. Harris, instead, sat quietly chatting with his son in the far right of the chamber, occasionally pointing out the room's features and looking into the press gallery.
While some Republicans leapt to their feet and cheered loudly when Boehner was announced as the GOP candidate for speaker, Harris clapped politely, showing about as much enthusiasm just a few minutes later when outgoing Speaker Nancy Pelosi was called as the Democratic candidate for the position.
Though most of her colleagues supported the Baltimore-born Pelosi for speaker, a handful of Democrats voted for North Carolina's Heath Shuler instead, prompting murmurs from the gathered crowd.
But otgoing Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, the Southern Maryland Democrat who has had a long and sometimes difficulty relationship with Pelosi dating to their days as aides to Republican Sen. Charles McC. "Mac" Mathias Jr., stood up and cast his vote with a flourish for "Maryland's favorite daughter, Nancy D'Alesandro Pelosi."
In his first address as Speaker, Boehner pledged new House rules -- to be voted on today -- that he said would increase transparency and accountability in the lower chamber. Committees would get smaller and more focused on government oversight, while new procedures would make it harder to propose increased spending and easier to propose spending cuts.
"We will start by cutting Congress's own budget," Boehner announced, prompting a standing ovation from Harris and the Republican side of the House.
Boehner pledged to be an approachable leader for both sides of the House, and promised Democrats a "robust debate" on all legislation.
"We can disagree without being disagreeable," he said.
At the other end of the Capitol, Barbara A. Mikulski was sworn in for a fifth term in the Senate, making the Maryland Democrat the longest-serving woman in the upper chamber. If she completes her term, she will tie former colleague Paul Sarbanes as the longest-serving Marylander in the Senate.
Comments
Only 26 days left for Rep. Harris to wait until he gets his tax-payer provided Government run health care.
Though that won't stop him from trying to get rid of Obama-care. Which provision does he hate the most? Kids up to 26 yr old being on their parents program? No denial of coverage due to pre-existing conditions? No caps on medical bills?
Oh to be as self centered as our new Representative.
Posted by: Aximill | January 5, 2011 3:43 PM
It is not that he opposes increasing the health insurance age for kids up to 26, or preventing the denial of coverage, or the medical caps...its more about paying for americans who wont get their lazy butts up and make their life what it should be, or maybe its the irradication of Flexible spending plans, or wait, maybe even the increases in provider co-pays, or the even better one is maybe he doesnt agree in all of us being thrown into a universal health care plan, where we will have lines, and lines just to see the dr.
The Health care reform, does in fact have some good modifications, but the reprocussions of the plan are far worse then the benefits.
Posted by: Nicole | January 5, 2011 4:05 PM
Andy Harris has been there for one day and already got a vote wrong.
Boehner shouldn't even be in congress, let alone speaker. His entire agenda is to make sure that President Obama fails in anything he does.
Rest assured that he will cave in to those loony tea-baggers on every issue, and Andy Harris will blindly follow him as he leads the country further behind China and Brazil and other countries who see the big picture.
Posted by: Fang | January 5, 2011 7:24 PM
Fang,
Boehner comes from humble roots and represents a large swath of the country that believes in equal opportunities for those willing to work for them, or who may need assistance due to disability or hard luck. It is easy for folks in this liberal bastion to think of everyone west of Montgomery County as ill-educated, bigoted and "looney." The Tea Party movement gave a voice to those folks who felt railroaded by the left. And before you lump me into the "looney", biased and uneducated category, my last name hails from the same country as does your's, tong-zhi, I am not a member of the Tea Party (although the sexual reference to the movement is totally out of bounds), AND I have a Ph.D. with a Yale background. I also grew up one town from where Boehner is from and I am insulted at the way we are all categorized as people who cling to our Bibles and guns and hate anyone who is different than ourselves. Perhaps once there is a recognition that bipartisanship includes more than the GOP caving to the liberals and that the rest of the country has a legiimate opinion too, Mr. Boehner's job - and that of our other representatives GOP and DEM, will be a lot easier. As for China seeing the big picture - don't even get me started. Great countries dont need to imprison those who disagree.
Posted by: MBT | January 6, 2011 5:02 PM