“There are not many of us that are going to be able to go because they’re limiting it pretty dramatically,” Scalise said. “There are a lot of people that haven’t been before that want to go.”
Lawmakers can’t bring guests, although some have announced “virtual” guests instead to tout notable constituents in their districts.
Pelosi, who normally has a box of seats available to fill, announced Tuesday that Kenneth Tai, the chief health officer at a community health center in San Francisco, will be her virtual guest.
The footprint from other branches of government is also being scaled back dramatically, with most Cabinet and executive officials watching remotely.
READ: Pence letter to Pelosi rejecting calls to invoke 25th Amendment thehill.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thehill.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Ahead of last week’s joint session of Congress, where lawmakers would eventually certify President-elect Joe Biden
The two held a series of meetings leading up to Wednesday in which Trump repeatedly attempted to pressure Pence to attempt to override Biden’s victory. “You can either go down in history as a patriot, or you can go down in history as a p ,” Trump said just before Pence headed to the Capitol on Wednesday, according to the Times, citing two people briefed on the conversation.
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Shortly after Pence arrived at the Capitol and the certification began, a mob of pro-Trump rioters breached the Capitol, forcing the Secret Service to evacuate Pence and prompting a lockdown of the building. Trump tweeted that Pence had lacked “the courage” to take action as the rioters, some of whom chanted for Pence to be hanged, stormed the Capitol.
The healing that our nation needs will not come from impeachment. It will begin with lawmakers working together in a bipartisan manner to propose legislation that solves problems for the American people. We need to get the economy moving. President-elect Joe Biden
House Democrats can incentivize their own moderates and Republicans to participate in legislation by giving them a real stake in the final passage by allowing earmarks. Lawmakers in either chamber would be hard-pressed to vote against a bill if it includes funds for a project in her or his district and regional partnerships can be strengthened if there’s a real chance for funding projects collaboratively.