Congressional Pomp:
I have a weekness for the old-fashioned pomp and circumstance of government so I loved reading this article about the first convening of of the 110th Congress, headed by Speaker-Elect Nancy Pelosi.
Some of the rituals I didn’t know about:
1. The Speaker of the House election is the only time the Speaker addresses Congress from the dais. All other times, the Speaker is on the House floor like everyone else.
2. It’s also the only time votes are announced out loud. Otherwise they are tabulated electronically.
3. Tradition dicates the Speaker is nominated by the head of the majority parties caucus, in this case Rahm Emanuel of Illinois.
4. Swearing in of the new speaker is done by the most senior member of the house, in this case John Dingell of Michigan who has served continuously since 1955.