WASHINGTON, Jan. 3 -- Representative Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, was elected the new speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Thursday, the first day of a new, divided Congress.
Pelosi, 78, is the only woman who has held the office before and is among a few elected officials to return to the post. She was the House speaker from 2007 to 2011 when her Democratic Party controlled the lower chamber.
For her second speakership, Pelosi defeated Republican nominee Kevin McCarthy in a roll-call vote Thursday, winning 220 votes out of a total of 430 present, according to cnn.
In her floor speech upon accepting the speaker's gavel, Pelosi said that the House floor must be "America's Town Hall" where people's voices will be heard and affect lawmakers' decisions as she was trying to set a bipartisan tone for the new Congress.
She previewed her party's long-term priorities, including tackling climate change, lowering health care costs, investing in "green" infrastructure and "restoring integrity" to government, while hinting at measures to end a partial government dragging into the 13th day on Thursday.
"Democrats will be offering the Senate Republican appropriations legislation to re-open government later today," Pelosi said.
About a quarter of the federal government shut down last month as a result of an impasse between the White House and the Congress over whether to provide billions of U.S. dollars for President Donald Trump's long-promised border wall.
Pelosi said in a clip airing on MSNBC on Wednesday that she's willing to give "nothing for the wall," while Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said the upper chamber won't consider any bills without the president's support.
Christopher Galdieri, assistant professor at Saint Anselm College, told Xinhua that he expects "the shutdown fight to continue take up most of the oxygen" in Washington.
The convening of the new Congress also comes at a time when Pelosi and her party are poised to confront the White House and the Republican agenda with their House majority, as Democratic lawmakers have vowed to conduct more oversight onto the Trump administration.
An effective legislator and political strategist, Pelosi played a key role in last year's midterm elections that saw Democrats seize control of the House for the first time in eight years by helping raise millions of dollars for Democratic candidates and keep them focus on the issue of health care on their campaign trails.
The new Congress Pelosi's now presiding over seats a record number of female lawmakers and is the most racially and ethnically diverse, including a new generation of Muslims, Latinos, Native Americans and African-Americans. The new speaker said she welcomes the "transformative freshman class."
In overall, Democrats have a 235-199 majority in the House, with one seat still in dispute after allegations of election fraud in the state of North Carolina. In the Senate, 53 Republicans hold the majority over 45 Democrats and two independents aligning with Democrats.
林赛罗韩感恩节奢侈品店大“血拼”
牛津字典收录微博词汇 网络用语受宠
大小贾斯汀共享“恋爱秘籍”:冷静承诺
美国人喜好调查:最爱披头士最恨慢车
北京奥运主题歌《我和你》传递温暖
台湾女性不惧当“剩女”
奥运双语八卦:中国羽坛的夫妻档
巴基斯坦女运动员:参加奥运就是梦想成真
“跳水沙皇”萨乌丁:北京奥运会没有遗憾
“哈利波特”捞金有术 跻身英国富豪榜
威廉王子未婚妻凯特订婚长裙惨遭山寨
20世纪最无聊一天:1954年4月11日
双语:牙膏会让胎儿大脑受损?
台湾女孩获杀入世界最好工作11强
最新研究挑战传统:男生学理科未必有优势
网通电信宣布:台湾地震受损电缆恢复运作
走马观花看美国:芝加哥繁华下的另一面
北京奥运闭幕式:贝克汉姆“领衔”伦敦8分钟
271件毕加索作品重见天日?
阿凡达发光树或成真 未来可代替路灯
澳大利亚青年欲破世界最长说唱纪录
今年圣诞不寂寞 “扁平爸爸”相作伴
双语:妈咪摇滚DJ席卷纽约
研究发现:人类大脑无法判断对方性别
诗词英译:沉醉东风-秋日湘阴道中
威廉王子婚礼将拍3D电影 与百姓分享
失恋男玩facebook受情伤竟频发哮喘
学礼仪 迎奥运
纳达尔进入奥运状态
双语美文:人生中的“蝴蝶效应”
不限 |
英语教案 |
英语课件 |
英语试题 |
不限 |
不限 |
上册 |
下册 |
不限 |