Editorial Board
Republicans’ Electoral Theatrics Will Do Lasting Harm
Refusing to certify the election is a hopeless cause. That doesn’t mean it’s not dangerous.
Dead end.
Photographer: Jason Andrew/Bloomberg
It’s a spectacle that precisely captures America’s current dysfunction: Nothing is really happening in Congress today, yet something is being irreparably broken all the same.
In its first joint session, the 117th Congress is meeting to count the votes of the Electoral College, a ceremonial event that has proved largely uneventful since 1789. Rather than simply affirming the will of the people, however, dozens of Republican lawmakers have said they plan to lodge objections to the process, delaying the proceedings for hours and again calling into question the legitimacy of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory.