House of Representatives votes to impeach President Trump for second time

• The House of Representatives voted to impeach President Donald Trump (R) on Jan. 13 by a vote of 232-197. The one article of impeachment accused Trump of incitement of insurrection following the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
   
• All 222 Democrats supported the resolution. Ten Republicans also voted to impeach:
  • Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.)
  • Anthony Gonzalez (R-Ohio)
  • Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.)
  • John Katko (R-N.Y.)
  • Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.)
  • Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.)
  • Peter Meijer (R-Mich.)
  • Tom Rice (R-S.C.)
  • Fred Upton (R-Mich.)
  • David Valadao (R-Calif.)
     
• Among the other House Republicans, 197 voted no, and four did not vote.
   
• Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said that the Senate would not reconvene before Jan. 19 to begin the trial.
   
• Trump released a video statement following the vote condemning the violence that occurred on Jan. 6. The video did not directly address the impeachment vote. 
   
• Trump was previously impeached and acquitted of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress charges on Feb. 5, 2020. No Republican members of the House supported impeachment for those charges. Two Democrats opposed the charge for abuse of power, and three opposed the charge for obstruction of Congress.
   
• This is the first time in U.S. history that a president has been impeached twice.

Biden to be inaugurated as nation’s 46th president

• Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) will be sworn in as the 46th president of the United States on Jan. 20. Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) will be sworn in as the 49th vice president of the United States, becoming the first Black woman and person of South Asian descent to serve in the office.
   
• Due to security concerns stemming from the breach of the U.S. Capitol, more than 20,000 National Guard members are expected to be in Washington, D.C. The National Mall will be closed to the general public, and there will be no public parade from the Capitol to the White House.

Chao, Wolf leave Cabinet

• Elaine Chao, the 18th secretary of transportation, resigned effective on Jan. 11. In a statement issued on Jan. 7, Chao said, “Yesterday, our country experienced a traumatic and entirely avoidable event as supporters of the President stormed the Capitol building following a rally he addressed. As I’m sure is the case with many of you, it has deeply troubled me in a way that I simply cannot set aside." Steven Bradbury, the department’s former acting deputy secretary, replaced Chao as acting secretary.
   
• Acting Secretary of Homeland Secretary Chad Wolf also resigned on Jan. 11. Wolf wrote in a letter to department staff, "Unfortunately, this action is warranted by recent events, including the ongoing and meritless court rulings regarding the validity of my authority as Acting Secretary." Peter Gaynor, the former administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, replaced Wolf as acting secretary.
   
• President Trump’s (R) Cabinet is a group of 16 people, including the vice president, who advise Trump on matters regarding the executive department that he or she oversees. Members are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. To learn more about Trump’s Cabinet, click here.

Richmond formally resigns from U.S. House, will become member of Biden’s staff

• Rep. Cedric Richmond (D) formally resigned from the U.S. House of Representatives on Jan. 15. Richmond left office in order to take a new position as senior adviser to the president and director of the White House Office of Public Engagement under the Biden administration. 
   
• Richmond represented Louisiana’s 2nd Congressional District from 2011 to 2021. He was most recently re-elected on Nov. 3, 2020, defeating David Schilling (R) and several other candidates in a nonpartisan primary election. During his tenure in Congress, Richmond served as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus from 2016 to 2018. 
   
• With Richmond’s resignation from Congress, the partisan breakdown of the House of Representatives is now 221 Democrats, 211 Republicans, and three vacancies. Louisiana’s 2nd Congressional District is now the second vacant Louisiana district, after the death of Congressman-elect Luke Letlow (R) on Dec. 29 left Louisiana’s 5th Congressional District vacant. 
   
• A special primary election will be held on Mar. 20 to fill Richmond’s seat. If no candidate receives at least 50% of the vote, the top-two vote recipients from the primary will advance to a general election on April 24.

Senate to begin confirmation hearings for Biden’s Cabinet nominees

• The first four confirmation hearings are scheduled for President-elect Joe Biden’s (D) Cabinet nominees on Jan. 19:
  • Lloyd Austin, nominee for secretary of defense, will appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
  • Janet Yellen, nominee for secretary of the treasury, will appear before the Senate Finance Committee.
  • Alejandro Mayorkas, nominee for secretary of homeland security, will appear before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
  • Tony Blinken, nominee for secretary of state, will appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
     
• Due to the late confirmation hearing schedule, it is unlikely Biden will have any Cabinet secretaries confirmed when he takes office.

Georgia counties complete certification of runoff results, state set to certify results next week

• Georgia counties completed certifying the results on Jan. 15 of the statewide runoffs for U.S. Senate held earlier this month. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) has until Jan. 22 to certify runoff results statewide, but it could be completed before that date. Winners Jon Ossoff (D) and Raphael Warnock (D) will assume office after the results are certified. Georgia's Voting System Implementation Manager Gabriel Sterling said his office would review the final certifications on Jan. 19.
   
• The 117th Senate has been one member short since David Perdue's (R) term ended on Jan. 3. Ossoff defeated Perdue, who was elected to the Senate in 2014. Kelly Loeffler (R) has filled the seat Sen. Johnny Isakson (R) vacated in December 2019. She continues to serve until Warnock, who defeated her in the special election, takes office. Warnock will complete the term Isakson won in 2016, which ends in January 2023.
   
• Currently, the Senate has 51 Republican members, 46 Democrats, and two independents who caucus with Democrats. Once Loeffler leaves office and Ossoff and Warnock are sworn in, the Democratic and Republican caucuses will be split 50-50. Kamala Harris (D), who will be sworn in as vice president on Jan. 20, will have the tie-breaking vote in the Senate. Among the first items before the fully formed Senate will be the impeachment trial of Donald Trump, deciding on President-elect Joe Biden's Cabinet appointments, and new COVID-19 relief legislation.
   
• One other runoff was held in Georgia on Jan. 5. District 4 Public Service Commissioner Bubba McDonald (R) won re-election against Daniel Blackman (D). McDonald received the most votes of any Republican candidate in the runoffs, whereas his opponent, Blackman, received the fewest votes of any Democratic candidate. For more results analysis, click here.

Five U.S. House members test positive for COVID-19

• On Jan. 14, Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.) announced he tested positive for COVID-19.
• On Jan. 12, Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) announced he tested positive for COVID-19. 
• On Jan. 11, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) announced she tested positive for COVID-19. 
• On Jan. 11, Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.) announced she tested positive for COVID-19.
• On Jan. 10, Rep. Charles Fleischmann (R-Tenn.) announced he tested positive for COVID-19.

Biden selects Burns as nominee for CIA director

• President-elect Joe Biden (D) announced William J. Burns, a former ambassador to Russia and Jordan, would be his nominee for director of the CIA. Burns retired from the U.S. Foreign Service after 33 years of service in 2014. He was also deputy secretary of state, under secretary of state for political affairs, and an assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs. He is currently the president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
   
• Politico reported that the position, created in 2005, will not be part of Biden’s Cabinet. President Donald Trump (R) was the first and only president to give it Cabinet-rank status.

SCOTUS resumes hearing oral argument of cases

• The Supreme Court of the United States began its January sitting on Jan. 11. The court is conducting oral arguments via teleconference and is providing live audio of the arguments. The court made the decision in accordance with public health guidance in response to COVID-19.
• The week of Jan. 11, the court heard a total of three hours of oral argument for three cases: 
  • Jan. 11: Albence v. Guzman Chavez
  • Jan. 12: Uzuegbunam v. Preczewski
  • Jan. 13: AMG Capital Management, LLC v. Federal Trade Commission

• The court will hear arguments in three cases next week, for a total of two hours of oral argument:
  • Jan. 19: BP P.L.C. v. Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, FCC v. Prometheus Radio Project (Consolidated with National Association of Broadcasters v. Prometheus Radio Project)