Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA) issued the following statement after voting to repeal the 2002 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF), which authorized the Iraq War and subsequent U.S. military activities in the Middle East: “Congressional authorizations to use force must not be blank checks to the executive branch, no matter which party controls it. Any use of force in the present woul... Read more »
As President William Howard Taft prepared to leave the White House, he told his successor Woodrow Wilson, “This is the loneliest place in the world.” While Taft’s remark referred to the great burdens of his job, it could apply today to Members of the House of Representatives precisely because we are being prevented from doing our job properly by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). If Taft were alive and ... Read more »
The U.S. House of Representatives will soon vote on statehood for the District of Columbia. Proponents have offered many reasons in support of the cause, some of these arguments having stronger justification than others, but they have yet to satisfactorily address what I believe to be the greatest counterargument against D.C. statehood: the Constitution of the United States. Among the powers grant... Read more »
Over the course of a few weeks, House Democrats have passed bill after bill aiming to fundamentally reshape the United States. House Democrat leaders spare no adjectives on what these bills would do. Take H.R. 1, which passed the House on March 3. According to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), it is “paving the way for transformative progress.” In the words of Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD), “This ... Read more »
Thank you for contacting me regarding the 2020 presidential election process. Since November, I have received more than 4,000 constituent messages related to the presidential election, the Electoral College vote and congressional certification, and the attack on our nation’s Capitol on January 6. These messages conveyed a wide range of emotions on several topics, including: • concerns that the ele... Read more »
Since 1789, the inauguration of a president of the United States every four years has functioned as an important civic ritual that transcends partisan politics. The Constitution originally said very little about inaugural ceremonies, only stating that the president must take an oath before assuming office. The 20th Amendment set the time for the transfer of power at noon on January 20. Otherwise, ... Read more »
Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA) issued the following statement after attending the inauguration of President Biden and Vice President Harris: “Congratulations to President Biden and Vice President Harris on taking their oaths of office. Our country faces grave challenges, and I appreciated the new President’s speech pledging to seek unity in addressing them. I will work with the new Administrat... Read more »
On January 20, Joe Biden will be sworn in as president of the United States. I will attend his inauguration, which I consider one of my duties as a Member of Congress. I also consider it my duty to conduct rigorous oversight of any Administration to ensure it upholds the Constitution and carries out the laws we enact. Earlier this year, I was sworn in for a new term. I am honored to represent you ... Read more »
37 Republican Members of Congress including Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA) issued a statement in advance of the joint session of Congress at 1 p.m. today. The statement notes, "As it pertains to our constitutional duty as Members of Congress on January 6, we have no express authority or ability to independently prove the many allegations of fraud in the subject states." The concern of the memb... Read more »
The process for electing a president of the United States continues to play out according to the Constitution. It includes several steps, none of which involve media organizations calling the race or projecting winners. Instead, states count the votes for the purposes of choosing electors to vote in the Electoral College, and the Electoral College’s tally must be certified by Congress. In many pre... Read more »
