Schatz sworn in as U.S. senator from Hawaii
Washington (CNN) - Hawaii's newest senator was nominated, appointed, and sworn into his seat so quickly he had to scramble to get himself ready for the red-eye flight to Washington.
"I bought this coat yesterday," Brian Schatz told reporters after landing on the mainland dressed in an overcoat - hardly necessary in Hawaii, where temperatures were in the low 70s on Thursday.
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Hours later, he was sworn in by the Senate's top officer, Vice President Joe Biden.
He was escorted into the chamber by Majority Leader Harry Reid and outgoing Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii.
On Wednesday, Gov. Neil Abercrombie appointed Schatz to the seat, which was vacated after the death of longtime Sen. Daniel Inouye. Prior to serving as lieutenant governor, Schatz was a state legislator and executive of a nonprofit group.
"I am honored to serve in this capacity, and I can assure you that if given the opportunity, I will make Hawaii proud," he said after the announcement. "I'm going to work very hard, and I understand the road ahead is going to be challenging for all of us, but it also is potentially a hopeful time to rebuild as a united congressional delegation."
He arrives in Washington as Congressional leaders are wrestling over a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff.
Schatz hitched a ride to Washington on Air Force One with President Barack Obama. Reporters traveling with the president said Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-New Mexico, and Obama's dog Bo were also on the flight.
CNN White House Correspondent Brianna Keilar contributed to this report.
Predicted this hours ago, I did. But, ah. Clouds everything, the dark side does A critical role in coming events, the Chosen One plays. A shatterpoint in the crisis, this tea party is.
Another socialist in the Senate.
Another loss for America.
Welcome to the fray Senator Schatz. Be prepared to witness stupidity on a level you can't possibly imagine yet. It appears your first step as a senator will be off a cliff.
Welcome Senator Schatz...I hope you are successful in helping the Democrats continue to dig out of this republican mess...Here come the haters in 5...4...3...2...1....
@Rick McDaniel
Another socialist in the Senate.
Another loss for America.
December 27, 2012 02:53 pm at 2:53 pm |
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You don't even know what socialism means. Give us a break.
let the senate show begin and we the people what kind of deck is he dealing with full of half
Let's all send a message to the extremist Tea Partiers. "We moderates are coming after you unpatriotic pledge takers."
I feel sorry for you Senator. Leaving paradise for a den filled with rabid wolves...... Good luck.
patmcguinness wrote:
".....and Speaker Pelosi replies with her now famous remark, "If they want to know what is in the bill, then they will just have to vote for it." Touche, Madame Speaker."
That's because Obama and the Democrats' claims that they would have the bill available for review were lies. They cooked it up in backroom deals and put it on the flloor to vote on it in the middle of the night – a 2000 page bill and no time to read it.
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The truth is what I posted. Why do you think "Charlie Daniels" backed off and said, "Doesn't matter." The GOP spent months complaining about how they were excluded from meetings where the drafting of the ACA legislation was taking place.
The simple truth is that the GOP simply boycotted the meetings. They did not "want to participate in the destruction of the US economy." That was their original reasons, but they never repeated them afterwards. Truthfully, they probably did not know what was in the legislation. Why that may have been so rests solely with the Republicans. Republicans could have attended the meetings, but they didn't. The Congressional attendance records and minutes of the meetins reflect these facts, too.
"Nice try, but we gotcha."