How far will the blue wave reach?

Pelosi to seat Democrat though Republican won?

‘Bottom line here is that nothing’s off the table,’ says spokesman for incoming speaker of House

It seems absurd on its face but it honestly has the potential to explode.

The certified winner of an office in the U.S. House of Representatives may not be seated with other members of Congress by incoming speaker Nancy Pelosi next week for one reason.

He’s a Republican.

In an extremely close race in Florida’s 13th District, Republican Vern Buchanan defeated Democrat Christine Jennings by 369 votes. But ongoing legal challenges by Democrats are putting Buchanan’s claim to the seat in jeopardy, now that the party in control of the majority has shifted away from the GOP.

I might agree, but on the other hand i have seen a few Democrats win very close elections and get certified and take their offices without interruption.

So why is this different?  I cannot answer.  The race was certified at the state level, so the matter "should" be done, but it is not.

"The bottom line here is that nothing’s off the table," Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill told the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

The paper reports Pelosi has refused to shut the door on Jennings, until all audits, lawsuits and a House investigation are completed.

Aides for Buchanan say the Republican will be in the nation’s capital next month despite the threat from Pelosi’s office.

"Historical precedent is that when there’s a contested race the certified winner be seated," said Buchanan spokeswoman Sally Tibbetts. "Therefore, we fully expect Vern Buchanan to be seated on Jan. 4."

Here is the quote of the day:

But Pelosi’s office says seating a certified victor is more of a Republican interpretation and not a concrete rule. For instance, in 1984, a Democrat-controlled House refused to seat Republican Richard McIntyre, the certified winner by 418 votes after a state-ordered recount.

Right!  That whole win and take office thing is just something Republicans made up.

Interestingly some opposition exists in the blue ranks:

"At most, he should be seated provisionally," said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., a close ally of Jennings. "In my mind, I can’t really justify leaving the constituents of the 13th District without representation during the House Administration and the court’s review."

Indeed.

At this point, neither a state audit of the touch-screen voting machines nor lawsuits by Jennings and voting groups have produced any evidence to suggest malfunction on Election Day.

So why the beef then?

The contested election is now in the political realm as Jennings has taken her challenge to Congress, filing a contest with the House Administration Committee seeking an investigation and, possibly, a new election.

Such a move could take months to resolve.

If Buchanan is indeed seated next week, history would be on his side for keeping it. Out of 105 contests filed since 1933, only twice has someone been unseated, with the last occurrence in 1967.

More here.

Republicans warn of severe repercussions for such a move on the first day of an ambitious Democratic agenda.

"I think it would be nuclear," said John Hambel, chief of staff to Rep. Adam Putnam of Bartow, the third-ranking Republican in the House.

So is this a legal possibility?  Yes:

A provision in the Constitution gives the House final say over who is allowed to be sworn and to arbitrate election disputes, with the power to change the state-certified election result, order a revote or seat no one. The vast majority of 102 election cases in the House since 1933 did not change the winner.

The House Administration Committee, which is responsible for investigating election complaints, is unlikely to act on the Jennings complaint until the legal process in Florida plays out.

I think that any interference by congress MUST be extremely rare to preserve the integrity of the state’s ability to elect its own representatives.  When republicans warn this could have repercussions, they are understating it.  With the present climate of partisanship, this could increase tensions at a time when bipartisanship is desperately needed.

Rather then play to Howard Dean’s "count till we win" crowd, it is time to lay aside this challenge and try to build a cohesive government.  If Pelosi snubs Buchanan it will signal a very hostile congress.

And it is not like they stand to lose their majority.  The democrats have nothing to gain here except ill will from not only republicans, but the public at large.

Opinion Journal has more:  Sore Winners - Democrats try to steal an election in Florida.

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