Speaker Mike Johnson seems to be caught in his own trap. Just hours after telling reporters he’d swear in Arizona’s newest Democratic congresswoman-elect “as soon as she wants,” a senior GOP aide walked that back—fast.
“We will swear in Rep.-Elect [Adelita] Grijalva as soon as the House returns to session when Chuck Schumer, Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego decide to open up the government,” the aide said Tuesday, blaming Senate Democrats for the hold-up.
It’s a sharp reversal—and one that’s raising eyebrows across the Capitol.
Grijalva, who won a special election in September to replace retired Rep. Raúl Grijalva (her father), is ready to get to work. But Johnson, despite having the power to swear her in during the current pro forma sessions, isn’t budging.
This isn’t just about a ceremonial photo op. It’s a power move—and a big one. Denying a duly elected member the ability to take her seat isn’t normal, even in the increasingly dysfunctional House.
And here’s the kicker: Johnson has already sworn in two Republicans—Jimmy Patronis and Randy Fine—during this exact same kind of pro forma session earlier this year. So the “it’s customary to wait for full legislative session” excuse doesn’t hold up.
Pressed by CNN’s Manu Raju on the Epstein files on Tuesday, Johnson insisted, “It has nothing to do with the Epstein vote at all. We will swear her in when everybody gets back. It’s a ceremonial duty.” He added, “Look, we’ll schedule it, I guess, as soon as she wants. It has nothing to do with it.”
But if it really has “nothing to do with it,” why the delay? Why treat Grijalva differently?
Grijalva has made it clear: she’s ready.
“Speaker Johnson needs to stop dragging his feet and follow the same precedent he set in swearing in his Republican colleagues earlier this year. If he would simply give me a date and time, I will be there,” she told reporters.
Johnson hasn’t given her one.
The delay isn’t just petty. It’s cutting off representation for thousands of constituents in Southern Arizona—many of whom rely on congressional offices for help with veterans’ benefits, Social Security, immigration cases, and more. Grijalva called it what it is: “robbing the people of Southern Arizona of essential constituent services.”
Democrats aren’t staying quiet.
Rep. Jim McGovern didn’t mince words Monday, saying, “This is outrageous. You got the White House undermining our democracy. Now you got the speaker of the House doing the same thing. I mean, this is all about a continuation of the Epstein cover up.”
Grijalva is expected to be the final signature needed on a discharge petition that would force a vote on releasing more materials related to the Epstein case—something House GOP leadership has been quietly trying to delay.
Johnson says the timing is just a coincidence. But the political gymnastics are getting harder to ignore. First it was “as soon as she wants.” Now it’s “whenever Senate Democrats end the shutdown.”
In the meantime, a duly elected congresswoman waits—and her constituents wait with her.
Watch the clip below:
RAJU: Earlier this year you swore in 2 Republican members during a pro forma session. So why not swear in Adelita Grijalva who was elected 2 weeks ago? Does it have to do with her 218th signature on the Epstein discharge petition?
MIKE JOHNSON: It has nothing to do with that at… pic.twitter.com/nc068SXk3o
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 7, 2025
