Oct. 22 (UPI) — Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes on Tuesday went to court to force U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson to swear-in to Congress a Democrat who won a special election last month.
Mayes filed the lawsuit against Johnson in federal court in Washington D.C., following through on a threat she made last week amid mounting protests over the ongoing delay in allowing Adelita Grijalva to take her seat after her decisive victory.
In the suit, Mayes wrote that Johnson, R-La., has not given “any valid reason for refusing to promptly seat Ms. Grijalva.” Mayes suggested that Johnson was delaying the seating of Grijalva because she would provide a decisive vote to force the release of documents related to Jeffery Epstein, a deceased sex trafficker who was friends with President Donald Trump before the two had a falling out.
“As of today, Arizona remains entitled to nine representatives,” Mayes wrote. “But Arizona presently has eight representatives sworn and seated in Congress, one fewer than the number to which it is entitled.”
She added that Johnson wanted a stronger hand in spending negotiations with Democrats, writing “Constitutional rights cannot be used as a bargaining chip.”
Johnson has kept the House in recess since the government shut down last month over a fight over healthcare subsidies. He has downplayed the delay, saying Grijalva would take her seat after the government reopened.
Speaking to the press Tuesday, Johnson called Mayes’ lawsuit “patently absurd.”
“We run the House,” he said. “She has no jurisdiction. We’re following the precedent. She’s looking for national publicity, apparently she’s gotten some of it, but good luck with that.”
Johnson told reporters Monday that Grijalva “should be serving her constituents” instead of making TikTok videos.
But Grijalva shot back at a press conference with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., saying she did not have a budget to provide services.
“Every moment that passes that I’m not able to provide constituent services or be a voice for Arizona,” she said. ” I can’t bring the issues forward that they sent me here to do.”
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