Rep. Adelita Grijalva is officially a member of Congress. On Wednesday, the Arizona Democrat stood on the House floor and took the oath of office, marking the end of a seven-week standoff with House Speaker Mike Johnson, who had refused to seat her during the record-long government shutdown.
On Thursday’s “Morning Joe,” co-host Mika Brzezinski said that she “had chills” watching Grijalva’s swearing-in speech and believed that the delay “seemed to make the moment even more powerful.”
“She came ready — really ready, ”Brzezinski said. “Like much of the women on our ‘50 Over 50’ list, this 55-year-old mother of three was ready for the job in front of her.”
She added that she was particularly moved by Grijalva’s family history, which the congresswoman shared on the House floor.
“When she stood up there and said ‘gracias’ and then talked about being the granddaughter of a Mexican immigrant and talking about the turn in her family from Mexican immigrant to her father, who became a member of Congress. … Only in America could that happen,” she recounted.
Brzezinski said Grijalva “took the mantle” from her late father, Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz., who died earlier this year.
“She talked about ICE raids, and she talked about health care,” Brzezinski continued, adding that Grijalva “capped it off” with a pledge that her first order of business was “going to be to sign that petition and to get answers on the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.” Brzezinski urged Grijalva’s fellow Democrats to take note of the freshman congresswoman’s speech, saying: “She had the Democratic message wrapped up in one.” “This woman is ready to go, and I think Republicans chose the wrong person to put off — let’s just put it that way,” she said. You can watch Brzezinski’s full remarks in the clip at the top of the page.
Allison Detzel is an editor/producer for MS NOW.
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