The first few days of January are set to be an incredibly busy time on Capitol Hill with leadership elections, the certification of the election on January 6, nomination hearings and the inauguration of a new president which has all become even more complicated by the expected services to remember former President Jimmy Carter.
On January 3rd, per the constitution, the House and Senate will convene to swear in members of the new Congress and elect a new Speaker of the House. The Senate has already elected their leadership. With the narrow majority in the House and several GOP hardliners already raising concerns with Speaker Mike Johnson’s leadership strategy, the speaker nomination process could drag out.
On Monday, January 6, heightened security is expected around the Capitol for the certification of the election — the fourth anniversary of the attack on the Capitol. It is unclear how Capitol Police and Secret Service will handle Carter’s lying in state and public access to his viewing amid these heightened concerns.
US President Joe Biden declared January 9, as a national day of mourning for Carter. The White House confirmed Monday that Carter’s official state funeral in Washington, DC, will also be held on January 9.
Then on January 20, President-elect Donald Trump will be inaugurated and, ahead of that, nomination hearings will begin on his picks for key cabinet positions.
In just the month of January, there will be three distinct national security events with Carter’s lying in state, the counting and certification of the electoral results and the inauguration.
Discussions are ongoing amongst House and Senate leaders around the timing of the lying in state for Carter, according to a source familiar with the conversations, but per past protocol, the date could be right around January 6.
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