Here is an update on a few items of note going on this week in Washington as well as nationwide.

 

First, some truly good news: Earlier this week, pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and BioNTech announced that its vaccine candidate against COVID-19 has been highly successful in its Phase 3 clinical study.  The companies said their data indicates that the vaccine has been more than 90% effective in preventing infection – far higher than initially anticipated.  Thanks to the Trump Administration’s Operation Warp Speed, our nation is poised to obtain at least 100 million doses of the vaccine, in record time, should it receive approval for use by the FDA.  A safe, effective vaccine is critical to bringing back our economy and resuming some sense of post-outbreak normalcy.  Because of the Administration’s proactive efforts, along with $10 billion appropriated by Congress, the approval of a vaccine and its distribution to tens of millions of Americans will be faster than many experts ever thought possible.

 

The news out of the House of Representatives this week, however, is less encouraging.  Democrats on the House Administration Committee announced they are seeking to expand the unconstitutional proxy voting scheme launched by House Democrat leadership this past May, indicating they will implement an unproven, insecure remote voting system.  This would be in direct contradiction of the Constitution, which requires a quorum to be present for the House to do business.  The existing electronic voting system on the House floor took three years of testing and development and is completely unconnected to the Internet, rendering it safe from cyberattack.  

Democrats are attempting to force adoption of a brand new voting system, untried, untested, and potentially insecure – and do it all practically overnight.  The Democrats’ system of remote committee hearings have been far less than ideal, marred by technical glitches and snafus.  Now they want to replicate this on the House floor.  

Just think of it this way: Millions of American have continued to go to work through the crisis – first responders, our military personnel, health care providers and grocery store workers to name just a few.  There’s no reason members of Congress can’t do the same.  In fact, the Constitution plainly states and requires it.  Meanwhile, about a quarter of Democrat members have stayed home at any given time since May.  This hinders Congress’s ability to work and puts even more power in the hands of Democrat leadership at the expense of rank and file members.  

I have every reason to believe that the US Supreme Court will ultimately rule all of this to be unconstitutional, but it may be some time before that day comes.  First, this would have to be implemented before a suit could be filed.  And then it would take some time for this to be considered by the high court.